Shadows Of The Past
by Northern-Southern Belle
Summary: Klaus is in trouble when Amy finds out that he and Margot concealed her ex-fiance Jonathan Putnam's presence from her, and now must learn to manage as the rogue warlock invades his family and his life at Amy's behest. Crossover with Born To Be Wild and sequel to The Mating Game.
1. Visiting Day

Disclaimer: Only plot and original characters belong to me!

"Anything interesting in the mail?" Klaus asked Amy. "Did you get a letter?"

"No," Amy shook her head and tried to hide the letter behind her back. "It's nothing."

"I see it," Klaus replied. "If it's nothing, then why are you trying to hide it from me?" He snatched it from her and read it over. "Well, well, well," He tore it apart. "It seems like you have a friend."

"I didn't do anything to encourage this, Klaus," Amy reminded him. "I don't even know who sent me the letter. There was no return address on the envelope!"

"I think it should be obvious to you who sent you that letter," Klaus replied. "Don't play stupid. I know you know!"

"No, I don't!" Amy cried. "And since you seem to have a better idea than I do about the identity of the sender, please tell me."

"Jonathan Putnam," Klaus said through his teeth. "Your old boyfriend. He's been nosing around here for months. I found him spying on us during New Years. And Margot told me he'd been around longer than that."

Amy's jaw dropped. "I don't understand," she said. "If you_ knew _Jonathan was around all this time, why didn't you_ tell _me?"

"Well, why do you need to know?" Klaus replied. "He's a criminal. You shouldn't want to have anything to do with him."

Amy scoffed. "You're not free of bad deeds yourself, Mister. I wouldn't judge if I were you. "

Klaus let out a growl from deep in his throat.

"Oh, stop!" Amy replied. "If that's supposed to scare me, it won't."

"So what are you gonna do?" Klaus asked.

"I'm gonna go to the jail to see him," Amy replied. "But first, I want to have a word with my sister, since she was as much a part of this deception as you were."

"Before you leave for the jail," Klaus told her, "come back here and get me. I want to come with you."

"No, you won't," Amy replied firmly. "I'm going by myself. But I'm sure you and Savannah can find something to do with yourselves, can't you?"

"But what if she turns into something while you're gone?" Klaus asked as she headed toward the door. "It's not like I can turn her back!"

"Well, I _could_ take her to the jail with me, but-"

"Amy!" Klaus interrupted in shock. "You wouldn't!"

"Or I could drop her off at my sister's," Amy finished. "Which one would you like?"

"Margot's, definitely," Klaus replied.

"All right," Amy nodded. "I'll drop her off at Margot's." She went to get Savannah, and then the two of them set off so that Amy could scold her sister.

* * *

"Margot!" Amy yelled, knocking on her sister's door. "I know Jonathan is out and about and that you and Klaus were keeping that fact from me! Why did you do that?"

Margot opened the door. "You know?" She asked. "Damn! You weren't supposed to!"

"What made you think you had the right to keep something like that from me? Are you still in love with him? Did you think that if you told me, I would try and take him away from you? Cause I won't!"

"It wasn't that," Margot replied. "I mean, he's a very handsome man, of course, but the only reason why he was at my house was that he broke out of jail and wanted me to hide him. I was gonna take him back, eventually."

"So nice of you ladies to talk about me," Kol replied, coming up behind Margot.

"What makes you think we were talking about you?" Margot asked without turning around.

"I heard you say 'He's a very handsome man', so naturally I assumed you were talking about me," Kol replied.

Margot rolled her eyes. "Well, we weren't talking about you!" She said. "Go find a mirror to stare into, or better yet, a place to live that isn't here!"

He didn't move, so she pushed him out of the way, then moved away from the door as Amy forced her way in. "Nice to see you too," Margot remarked dryly. "What's gotten your panties in a bunch?"

"I _know_ that you kept Jonathan here forever without telling me. Then Klaus found out and he didn't tell me either! What in the world is wrong with you two?"

"Why do you care?" Margot asked. "Do you still like him?"

"Do _you_?" Amy asked. "Is that why you concealed him here and risked punishment from the council?"

"No!" Margot shook her head quickly. "Of course I don't like him anymore! That's all over and done with. He's always gonna like you more anyway. I just...he was an old friend and needed a place to stay is all. So I helped him. But then I was the one who brought him back to jail, and Astrid knows that, so I'm good in that regard."

"Well, you're damn lucky, Margot," Amy told her. "So he's at the Council jail now?"

"Yeah," Margot sighed. "Are you gonna go see him?"

Amy nodded. "I was thinking about it." Then Savannah let out a brief whimper and Amy looked down at her as if she'd forgotten the baby was there. "Oh, and will you watch Savannah for me? I don't think a prison is a good place for a baby."

"Sure," Margot replied, taking her. "Are we even once I do this?"

"I'll think about it," Amy replied. "But I don't know."

* * *

"Putnam!" The warden yelled as he knocked on Jonathan's cell, rousing him from a doze. "Get up! You have a visitor!"

"I _do_?" Jonathan asked, jumping to his feet. "Who is it?"

"A young lady," the warden replied. "So be on your best behavior." He was let out and led down the rows of cells full of hollering prisoners and led to the visiting room. His eyes widened and he ran in the rest of the way when he saw Amy. "I'll be right outside," the guard told her. "Just yell if you have any problems."

"Thank you," Amy told him. "But I think I'll be fine." The guard shut the door, leaving Amy and Jonathan alone. "I know we don't have a lot of time," she said. "But once I found out you were here, I wanted to see you. I heard from Margot and my husband that you've been around awhile."

"Yes, I have," Jonathan nodded. "Trying to catch glimpses of you whenever I could, but naturally, it's been difficult."

"How did you end up here?" Amy asked.

"Well, I've been without power a long time, Amy," he said. "For a little while, I was okay with it, but then I began to think about how unfair it was that everyone around me got to have powers when I myself was without because of a mistake made by one of my relatives. It wasn't fair. So, I decided to take power from others, and naturally, that was frowned upon, so here I am."

Amy sighed. "What was it I used to tell you?" She asked as she put a hand on his. "It doesn't matter if you have powers. What matters is that you're a good person. You forgot that, didn't you?"

"Yes," Jonathan nodded, looking at her hand over his. "I did forget that. I'm sorry." Then, he cleared his throat. "Enough about me, what about your life? I understand you're married. I've had a few altercations with your husband."

"I know," Amy told him. "I'm sorry about that, really. He's just the jealous type. He found out I was coming here to see you and nearly had a coronary. And we have a little girl, too. She just started showing signs of powers last month."

"Did she?" He grinned. "That must be nice."

"Yeah," Amy nodded. "It is."

Just then, the door opened. "Excuse me, miss?" The guard poked his head in. "I'm sorry, but your time is up."

"Oh, thank you," Amy nodded at him and stood up. "It-it was good to see you," she told Jonathan.

"It was good to see you too," he told her. "You're as lovely as ever. Will you come back and visit me again, Amy? I get so little company?"

"Yes," Amy grinned. "Of course I will. "Good-bye, Jonathan."

* * *

"...So now she's at a _jail_ by herself, visiting her ex-fiance!" Klaus fumed, pounding his fist on the table. "She wouldn't even let me come with her! I mean, you'd never let Selina get away with doing something like that, would you, brother?"

Elijah steepled his fingers and stared at his brother from the other side of his desk in his office. "Kindly don't hit the table, Niklaus," he said. "It'll ruin the wood. As for your question, of course I wouldn't. In fact, just the other day, Selina got a call from Damon Salvatore, some problem with Sam. And he had the _nerve _ to call her by a pet name when he _knew_ I was in the room!"

"Well, that's rough and I _am_ sorry," Klaus replied. "But back to my problem: what should I do?"

"Next time you see her," Elijah instructed, "Tell her that when she goes to the jail in the future, you come with her, or she doesn't go at all. Can you do that?"

"Well, of course," Klaus nodded. "And I'll be willing to risk whatever magical revenge she takes on me too. It can't be too bad, can it?"

"I don't know, brother," Elijah told him. "But good luck!"

"What are you two talking about?" Selina asked as she poked her head in the office door. "And does anyone want snacks?"

"No, thank you," Elijah replied. "We're talking about something important. Come back later." Selina ignored this and came inside, coming to stand next to Klaus. "So, how's Amy?" She asked him.

"Not bad," Klaus replied. "Meeting her ex-fiance in jail right now, but other than that, not bad."

Selina's eyes widened. "What did Amy do to land in jail?"

"She was not _put_ in jail," Elijah corrected. "She went to visit someone _in_ jail."

"Oh!" Selina nodded. "Good. I was worried for a minute there!"

"Didn't I tell you to keep working on the wedding plans during Niklaus' visit?" Elijah asked her.

"Well, fine, Mr. Bossy," Selina replied. "I'll go. I know when I'm not wanted. You don't have to tell me twice." She left and Elijah sighed. "I have to tell her many _more_ times than twice. She has an annoying habit of always wanting to be involved in things that aren't her business."

"So, whose wedding is she planning?" Klaus asked him. "Are you and she renewing your vows? Do I need to pull out my best man tuxedo?"

"It's Laura and Edward's wedding, not ours," Elijah corrected.

"But I thought that wouldn't take place for a few more months." Klaus said. "What happened?"

"Laura got pregnant is what happened," Elijah replied. "Not that I'm too upset. It's not like they weren't already engaged when it happened. And Edward is a fine, upstanding young man."

"Like you'd let Laura date any other kind," Klaus told him.

"You're right, I wouldn't," Elijah nodded. "Now, is there anything else you need from me?"

"No," Klaus shook his head and stood up. "Good luck with the wedding planning and I'm gonna go try my luck with Amy."

"All right," Elijah nodded. "Good luck, brother."

* * *

"And just where were you?" Amy asked when Klaus came through the door.

"I was visiting my brother," Klaus replied. "If you can go to a jail and visit your criminal ex-fiance, then surely my visiting my brother is no problem."

"Well, you could have at least left a note," Amy told him. "I was worried!"

"You were," Klaus replied in surprise. "I thought you'd be cursing me to hell right now."

"No!" Amy shook her head. "Don't get me wrong, I mean, I'm still mad at you for not trusting me, but that's all."

He came and put his arms around her waist. "Is Savannah asleep?" He asked right next to her ear.

"Yes," Amy nodded as his hands slid down her body. "But don't think you can use sex to try and make me forgive you."

"Oh, certainly not," Klaus replied and slung her over his shoulder, carrying her to their room. "I'm not doing this because I want you to forgive me. I'm doing this because I want to have sex!"

"Oh, all right," Amy chuckled as he undressed her and unzipped his pants. "Whatever. I don't care." She held onto him tight, tingles coursing through her body as his hands slid up her inner thighs, and then, as he kissed her deeply, slipped inside her.

"Oh, my goodness," Amy whispered. "Oh, my goodness!" She held on tighter as he entered a few more times, her fingers threading through his wet blond hair. Then, as Amy panted, he paused and looked down into her eyes. "I love you," he said to her.

And when she got breath to speak again, she said, "I love you too."

**A/N: This story is a crossover with my fic "Born To Be Wild".**


	2. A Simple Business Transaction

"Dad!" Adrian cried as he helped his father through the door. "You look so tired. What's happened? Amy keeping you up at night?"

"No, actually Savannah is." He managed to make it to the sofa before he collapsed. "She's got her powers now and they show up at the most inconvenient times. I haven't gotten a decent nights' sleep in days! I don't remember Felicity ever making me so tired."

"Well, Amy is helping you, right?" Adrian asked. "She's not making you handle things all by yourself?"

"Of course not!" Klaus replied. "Usually, we handle it together."

"Well, that's nice!" Helene told him. "How_ is _Amy?"

"Well, she's been making more visits to the Council jail than I'd like," Klaus said. "Cause for some reason she can't go more than twenty-four hours without seeing Jonathan Putnam."

"Oh, yeah!" Helene nodded. "Mom's mentioned that."

"And did I also mention that Amy has it in her head that my brother Kol is a good match for Margot?" Klaus asked, looking slyly at Helene. "She pushed them together on Valentine's day and now he's settled himself at her house and refuses to leave. He must like her!"

"And if it ever turns into something between them," Helene replied, deadpan, "The best of luck to Margot. She'd probably be able to handle him better than I ever did."

* * *

"You stay here one more day and I'm gonna start making you pay rent," Margot told Kol. He turned from the stove where he was making pancakes and gave her a smirk. "Is that really what you want to say to the person who's making you breakfast?"

"I can make my own breakfast, thank you," Margot told him. "I'm not eating yours because no amount of pancakes is worth you saying that I owe you a place in my house because I ate them. It's trickery and you're horrible!"

"Fine," Kol replied and flipped the ones he'd already made onto a plate. "Suit yourself!"

"Why do you even want to stay here anyway?" Margot asked, sitting across from him at the table. "You could stay anywhere."

Kol grinned. "Let's just say I like a challenge," he said. She chuckled. "So you're trying to tell me that the reason why you stay here is cause you want to ask me out on a date? That's really desperate!"

"It won't be when you finally say 'Yes'," Kol replied. "And trust me, Margot. You will."

Margot scoffed. "Shows what you know. And it figures since you're so in love with yourself that you'd think you could make me fall in love with you too."

"Well, we already know you enjoy my company," Kol pointed out. "Like when our niece came over and we watched that movie. That was fun, wasn't it?"

"Well, I didn't have much choice for activities," Margot reminded him. "And given the situation, I guess it was fun."

"See?" Kol said. "Now, we're getting somewhere. You know you can have fun with me, even if you won't admit to anything else."

Amy sighed. "I suppose." She paused. "I'm gonna do a load of white laundry. Do you have any socks or anything that you need to be washed?"

"Sure," Kol nodded. "Check my bedroom floor."

Rolling her eyes, Margot went into his bedroom, expecting to find clothes all over the floor, but to her surprise, he wa really neat with every piece of clothing in the hamper. She took out all the whites and, realizing that he had enough for a whole load himself, a wicked thought crossed her mind as she chuckled to herself and removed her own clothes and put his in the basket before carrying it to her room and placing a pair of dark red panties among the whites before dumping the load in the washer.

"All right," she said, coming back to Kol in the kitchen. "I've taken care of your whites. You had more than I did, so I decided to just do mine later."

"Well, aren't you considerate?" He asked. "Then his eyes narrowed. "Why? Why are you being so nice to me?"

Margot shrugged. "Can't a friend just do nice things for another friend? I'll stick them in the dryer in thirty-five minutes."

They waited and then Margot went to get the load, giggling crazily when she saw all of Kol's whites were now pink. She brought the basket of laundry out to the living room and dumped it all out on the floor. "Here are your clothes!" She called. "Come and see what a good job I did of washing them!"

Kol came out, saw the pink pile, and felt his jaw drop a little. "What the hell did you do?" He asked.

Margot chuckled and shrugged. "I guess I'm just not as good at doing laundry as I thought."

It was then that Kol found the red panties. "Well, look here," he said, picking up the silky red fabric and moving it around between his fingers. "Looks like this is the culprit. Can you tell me how a pair of your red panties got in with my laundry?"

"I thought pink would go well with your eyes," Margot replied. "Enjoy your new wardrobe." To add insult to injury, she zapped the pink shirt on him. "I was right," She grinned. "It looks great."

That was all Kol could take. Fangs bared, he began chasing her around the living room. "I'll kill you for this!" He yelled.

"Not if you can't catch me!" Margot yelled back.

They ran around for a little bit, and then Margot slipped on one of Kol's pink shirts and fell on the floor, then Kol tripped over _her_ so he was lying across her body. He then shifted his body a little so he was on top of her and looking into her eyes. She stared up at him, swallowing hard. "Kol..." she whispered.

Then, he slowly lowered his head and captured her mouth with his. Margot reacted with surprise at first and resisted for a brief moment before bringing her arms up to help him remove the pink shirt. He then slipped off her top and added it to the pile, followed by her bra. When they were both in their underwear, he backed off her. "Hey!" Margot cried. "What are you doing?"

Kol picked up the red panties from the carpet and dangled them from his pointer finger. "Put these on," he said. "I wanna see you wear them."

"But what's the point?" Margot asked. "Why would you want to take all the time removing _two_ pairs of panties when you could only remove one?"

"Just do it!" Kol burst out, then said more quietly, "please."

Sighing, Margot took the red panties from him as he gazed at her intently, waiting. "You're gonna watch me change panties?" She asked.

"Oh, yes," Kol nodded, his tongue moving over his lips.

Feeling her face heat up from his intense gaze, she removed her black panties and slowly put the red ones on, kicking the other pair out of the way. "Good girl," Kol whispered.

Margot had been unnerved by the intense gaze of his dark eyes at first, but now that she'd had time to get used to it, she found it arousing._ Immensely _arousing. "What now?" She asked.

Kol took a few steps toward her, drinking in her nicely rounded breasts, thinking how much he'd like to have his lips around her beautiful pink nipples. He pulled her to him, kissing her again. He started at her lips, then moved down her neck and her collarbone, before he lowered her onto the floor, squeezing the nipples gently. The brief bursts of pain made her gasp, but then the gentle sucking motion of his mouth made the pain go away and she was left with nothing but feelings of arousal. She moaned. Slowly, Kol released her and grinned. "You like that, darling?" He whispered. She squirmed. "More!" She cried, and sat up, kissing him hard, her hand going down his chest and into his boxers. She felt his hardness in her hand and stroked it.

"Oh, darling," he whispered. "You're such a wicked girl!"

"Yeah, I am," Margot grinned. She removed his boxers so he was naked before her, and went for it. But he stopped her, kissed her hard, and took control, pushing into her a few times as she shrieked, his fingers running through her red hair. Finally, as they both panted, he rolled off her. They didn't have long to rest though before the doorbell rang. "Margot!" Amy called. "Are you in there? I called and you didn't answer. "Are you okay?"

"Oh, fuck!" Margot said to Kol. "It's my sister! Get up! Get up!" She quickly zapped clothes on the both of them. "Now, you are not to mention _any_ of what just happened to my sister or your brother, do you understand me?" She ordered Kol.

"Fine," Kol smirked. "I won't if you won't."

Margot tried to maintain a leisurely pace as she made it to the front door and opened it to face her sister.

"Are you all right?" Amy asked as she made her way inside. "I was calling and calling and you didn't answer!"

"When did you call?" Margot asked. "I've been busy."

Amy surveyed her and Kol. "Why are you both so sweaty?" She asked.

"New exercise program," Kol said immediately. "Very arduous." Margot nodded. "You don't have to worry about me," she assured her sister. "I promise everything is okay."

Looking skeptical, Amy continued on into the house. "What's with all this pink laundry?" She asked, surveying the mess in the living room. "Do I need to give you another lesson in how to do it the human way, Margot?"

"No," Kol replied. "She knows how. This was all just due to a joke she was playing on me."

"Yeah," Margot said. "Just a stupid prank. I'll fix it."

Amy looked back and forth between the two of them. "All right," she said. "If you're sure everything is all right here, I'll go."

"It is," Margot replied, even giving her older sister a push toward the door. "You don't have to worry about a thing."

* * *

Sighing, Amy headed back to her house and Klaus met her by the door with a knowing look. "There weren't any problems with Kol and Margot, were there?"

"No," Amy shook her head. "Apparently, they were just doing some very vigorous exercise together and that's why they didn't hear the phone. What?" She asked when she noticed Klaus was chuckling. "What's so funny?"

"Well, I can only think of one vigorous exercise our siblings would do together," he said. "I'm just amazed Margot let Kol plant his flag so soon."

"No!" Amy said in surprise. "You don't mean to say that Kol and Margot were..._doing it_ before I cam over, do you?"

"Yes," Klaus nodded. "That is what I mean to say." Just then, they heard a noise from Savannah's room and the lights went off.

"Well, that must've been a powerful sneeze," Klaus remarked. "Can you fix this one, Amy?"

"You know, it's a weird thing," Amy told him as they made their way toward Savannah's room. "Electricity is one thing that magic can't fix, so we'll just have to wait until it comes back on by itself. I'm sure it'll happen soon, though."

Because it was daytime, the power outage wasn't much of an inconvenience because of all the natural light pouring in through the windows. Amy picked sobbing Savannah up out of her crib and tried to calm her. "It's okay," she said. "You're just having your powers show up. Nothing is wrong." Eventually, Savannah stopped crying, but Amy held on to her just the same.

"I still can't believe that about Kol and Margot," she told Klaus.

"Why not?" Klaus asked. "They're two young, attractive, unattached people. And wasn't it you who said you wanted them to be together?"

"Well, yeah!" Amy nodded. "But the _right_ way, with dates, and courting, and a big wedding before...you know."

"But that's not what happened between _us_," Klaus reminded her, taking Savannah. "It was this little darling here that brought us together." He tickled her under her chin and she giggled.

"I know it's really hypocritical of me to expect my sister to control her libido when I couldn't, but I just...I want her to be _better_ than me," Amy replied.

"Why?" Klaus asked. "So your parents won't disown her too? May I remind you that your parents are dead?"

"Oh, I remember that," Amy replied. "How could I forget the day I found out what Felicity did and them taking her away? Anyway, maybe I'm just being silly. Maybe I should sit back and let my sister run her life the way she chooses."

"There you go," Klaus encouraged. "I think you'll kill yourself if you do otherwise."

* * *

A few days later, Kol came into the house with an envelope in his hand that held inside it Laura and Edward's wedding invite. "What's that?" Margot asked with interest.

"It's an invitation to my niece's wedding," Kol told her. "And it says I can have a plus one. Wanna be my date?"

Margot's eyes widened. "Seriously?"

"Not in a romantic way," Kol said quickly. "If I show up alone, I'll have to hear about it from my brother."

"Me too," Margot agreed. "But from Amy."

"If it'll make us both feel better about this, I'll pay you," Kol told her. "It won't be a date, it'll be a business transaction."

"Fine," Margot agreed. "And I wouldn't mind us having other business transactions in the future. Amy's been nagging me to get a job. I figure that would be close enough, right?"


	3. The Unwelcome Houseguest

Amy had been visiting Jonathan for a couple of weeks when Astrid showed up at her and Klaus' house.

"What can I do for you, Astrid?" Klaus asked her.

"Is Amy home?" Astrid asked him. "Not that I don't enjoy talking to you, but I have an important matter to discuss with her. Actually, with both of you."

"All right," Klaus nodded and gestured for her to come inside. "Have a seat and I'll go get Amy. I would yell, but Savannah is napping and I don't want to wake her."

"No," Astrid shook her head. "I understand."

Klaus went and found Amy just as she was coming out of Savannah's room and shutting the door behind her. "Astrid wants to see you," he told her. "She says she wants to talk to us about something."

"Nothing bad, I hope?" Amy asked nervously. "Did she seem angry?"

"No," Klaus shook his head. "Not really." They went back to Astrid and settled themselves on the sofa. "So what is it that we can do for you?" Amy asked.

"It's about Jonathan Putnam," Astrid replied. "He's actually eligible for parole in a bit, and I need your help. His parole hearing is coming up. Based on the break-out that he was responsible for, we were thinking of denying him parole, but you seem to have had a very good influence on him, Amy."

"Oh, have I?" Amy asked. "Well, good!"

"Which is why, for his parole, we were wondering if maybe the two of you wouldn't mind putting him up for a period of time?" Astrid asked hopefully. "I normally wouldn't ask, and this is highly irregular, but I just wouldn't feel right completely denying him parole when he_ has_ behaved well under your influence. So will you do it?"

Without looking at Klaus, Amy said immediately, "Sure we will!"

"All right," Astrid replied. "Thank you so much. I know this is a bit of an inconvenience, and I'm really grateful for your help!" She left and then Klaus looked daggers at Amy.

"What?" Amy asked.

"Don't look at me with those big, innocent eyes of yours and ask me 'What?'" Klaus exclaimed. "You know damn well, 'What', and you just chose to ignore it!"

"So I was supposed to tell Astrid 'No'?" Amy yelled. "But she needed help! I couldn't just let her down!"

"Yes, you could have!" Klaus replied. "She would've found another way to handle the situation if you had. It wouldn't have been the end of the world."

"Is the fact that it's Jonathan the problem?" Amy asked.

"Well, yes!" Klaus nodded. "If you must know. I don't think I'm stepping out of line when I say I'm uncomfortable with your ex-fiance living at my house!"

"You don't trust me!" Amy said, realization dawning. "You think that with Jonathan here, I'll fall in love with him and leave you behind. Well, you know what? That really hurts!"

"Then tell Astrid someone else has to babysit your ex-fiance and the whole situation will be cleared up," Klaus shot back. "It's not difficult."

Amy shook her head, her eyes narrowed. "No," she said. "Just to prove to you that I'm not the fickle cheat you think I am, he will come here and I will show you that my life is all about you and Savannah, and that he has no effect on me!" She paused. "That reminds me: I need to ask Astrid when I should go and pick Jonathan up. That will also tell _you_ how much time you have to adjust your attitude!"

"I don't have to stand here and take this," Klaus said. "I'm going to Enid's, and if I come back, it'll probably be late, so don't wait up for anything."

"Fine!" Amy shouted back. "Have a good time, you big baby!"

He slammed the door behind him, waking up Savannah. Rolling her eyes, Amy went to calm her daughter. "It's all right," she said. "Daddy's just worried because Mommy's inviting over a friend, and that makes Daddy nervous. I think you'll like him, sweetie. For all his troubles, he's really a very nice man. In fact, I think I'll bring you with me the day I go to pick him up so the two of you can meet. That'll be nice."

* * *

"Now, I get it, son," Klaus said as he and Adrian drank together at Enid's with Roxie continually passing them beers. "I thought I had a witch who was absolutely perfect and would _never_ cause me trouble the way Helene did with you, but apparently, I was wrong."

"Damn, Dad, I'm sorry," Adrian slurred. "Really. What did Amy did now?" His head was nearly resting on the bar and Roxie held his keys.

"Are we trash-talking Amy?" She asked eagerly. "Cause I want in on this. I need a good laugh what with all the problems I've had concerning Joey."

"Amy has invited her convict ex-fiance to come live with us," Klaus explained. "It was Astrid's idea. She wanted to let him be on parole, but have someone keep an eye on him, and apparently since Amy is such a good influence, I'm stuck with him for who knows how long."

"Wow, and she didn't even ask you first before she said he could stay?" Roxie asked. "No wonder you're drinking so much. Do you think Amy will cheat on you?"

"No, but I don't like him!" Klaus pounded the table. "I've already tried to kill him twice. How much clearer could my feelings toward him be?"

"I can't think how you could make them any clearer," Roxie said. "And I know it was pretty awful of Amy to invite her ex-fiance to your house without asking you, but I think you should be civil to him. If you aren't, Amy will be mad at you and just gravitate toward him more."

"Wow," Vince said, coming up behind her and giving her a kiss. "So much wisdom, coming from you, babe. I didn't expect it."

"Well, I have my moments," Roxie replied. She looked at her brother, pushing his head up so they were eye to red, bloodshot eye. "We know why Dad is drinking himself sick. What's your excuse? Did you and Helene fight again?"

"No," Adrian shook his head. "This is a a celebratory binge! Felicity likes me now and is calling me 'Dad'!"

"What?" Klaus asked. "She calls _me_ 'Dad'!"

Adrian chuckled. "Not anymore! Apparently, your closeness with Savannah made her jealous, so she came running to Helene and me for comfort."

Klaus sighed. "I'll have to talk to her. I had no idea she felt so bad. Then again, ever since she moved out, I don't see much of her."

"But back to the problem of Amy's ex-fiance," Roxie said, "What are you gonna do, Daddy?"

"I'll have to put up with it, won't I?" Klaus replied. "But that doesn't mean I can't make some preparations ahead of time." He plunked his empty beer glass down along with some money and smiled at his daughter. "Wish me luck," he said.

"Need any help, Dad?" Adrian asked, sitting up."

"No, thank you, son," Klaus replied. "You just go back to Helene and let me handle this on my own."

Once he was gone, Roxie looked at her brother. "When you get ready to go home, tell me," she said. "Cause I think it would be better if I drove you."

* * *

When Klaus left the bar, he didn't go straight home. Instead, he went to Alistair and Astrid's. Astrid saw him coming and said, "are you here to complain about Jonathan? I know it was kind of a bad thing to drop on you."

"Well, thank you," Klaus replied. "But Amy doesn't seem to be as forgiving as you, so the only thing I can do now is complain to other people. Where's the closet? I want to go see James and Lenora!"

Sighing, Astrid led Klaus to the closet that would take him to James and Lenora's and sent him through.

"What was that about?" Alistair asked.

"Passive-aggressive complaining cause I suggested sending Jonathan Putnam to his house to serve the first year of being on parole and Amy said 'Yes' without asking him."

"Astrid," Alistair chided her. "That wasn't nice! You're not actually gonna send him to their house, are you?"

Astrid's cheeks colored slightly. "Well, I've sort of already told him the plan, so I can't go back on it now. And yes, I _am_ ashamed."

"Well, good luck to Mr. Putnam," Alistair replied. "He'll have it tougher out of jail than he did in. I just hope he can make it."

* * *

"Grandpa!" Lenora asked in surprise. "Come in, come in!"

"Sorry I didn't call first," Klaus replied as he came inside. "But I really don't know how to do that with you. Is James around, or is he working?"

"No, he's here," Lenora replied. "James! My grandfather wants to talk to you!"

James appeared a few minutes later, grumbling to himself.

"He's out of sorts because he went to all that trouble to catch Jonathan Putnam again and now Grandma's just letting him out on parole. Maybe you could do something to cheer him up," Lenora suggested to Klaus.

"Hey," Klaus said, going over to James. "I have as much reason to hate Jonathan Putnam as you do. He's staying at _my_ house during his first year on parole, he's Amy's ex-fiance, _and _him coming to stay with us was her idea."

James perked up. "So he's at your house?" He asked. "Or he will be? I'd be more than willing to think up a way to get him back in jail. That would solve both of our problems!"

"Or," Klaus suggested, his eyes widening, "Send him to the man who's taken over your old post. If he uses his powers to steal Amy from me, that would put him in your old arena, right?"

"Why yes," James replied. "I think it would! Take notes of all their interactions and bring them to me. We can make this work!"

"You know that's not right," Lenora reminded him. "And an abuse of your position."

"It's not if he _actually_ does something wrong," James countered.

"Well, speaking as someone who's had the experience," Lenora replied dryly, "You and I both know you're not above manipulating a situation so that you get your way."

"Hey, I did you a favor!" James told her. "Don't deny that!"

"I'm not saying that I'm mad at you for what you did, or that I'm not happy," Lenora countered. "I'm just saying you're not above manipulating situations for your own personal gain. And don't pretend like that isn't true!"

"So will you help me with Jonathan Putnam, or not?" Klaus asked James. He looked at Lenora, who was shaking her head vigorously, then looked back at Klaus, sticking out his hand. "Of course I will," he said while Lenora groaned. "Just leave it to me!"

And as a final precaution, before he put Savannah to bed the night before Jonathan was to come, he took her in his arms and sat down with her in the rocking chair so they could talk.

"Tomorrow, your mother is going to take you to meet a man," he told her. "He might seem like a really nice man, but all he is is a bad man who is trying to tear your mommy and daddy apart. Don't fall for anything he says. Every time he holds you, scream your guts out. Make it clear to your mommy that you won't stand for this kind of behavior, or that _person_ in our house! He may sound like me, but he's not, and I really hope you're old enough to know the difference."

He then put her back in her crib, tucked her in, turned off her light, and hoped for the best.

* * *

"Jonathan!" Amy exclaimed as she and Savannah met him in the visiting room of the jail. He held one small bag and looked eager to go.

"Well, who's this?" He asked, smiling at Savannah.

"This is my daughter," Amy replied, letting him hold her. She was resistant at first, but as he and Amy talked, she seemed to relax.

"I think she likes you," Amy remarked. "And that's good, since you'll be with us for awhile."

"I have to say," Jonathan replied, "that she's beautiful just like you."

"Oh, aren't you sweet?" Amy replied."Now how about we go to the car and get you into your new home?"

"That sounds wonderful," Jonathan replied, handing Savannah back to Amy. "Lead the way."

But when they arrived, they found another car in the driveway. When they got inside, Klaus met them. "I hate to tell you this," he said to both of them. "But my daughter Lucy has come to stay because of difficulties at home, and I really think we should only have one guest at a time."

Jonathan hesitated.

"Don't listen to him, Jonathan," Amy said. "There's room for everyone. We won't turn anyone out." She took him to his room and watched as he put his bag on the bed. "I don't have much," he said.

"Don't worry," Amy told him. "We can take care of that. Now, you can rest if you want, or watch TV, or whatever. Just do what you need to in order to make yourself feel at home."

"I will," Jonathan replied. "And thank you, darling, for letting me have this second chance. I'm well aware that without you, it wouldn't have happened."

"You don't have to thank me," Amy assured him. "Just be the best person you can be, and that will be enough thanks. And if my husband gives you trouble, just tell me and I'll deal with it. Cause like I said, this is your home now, just as much as it is his and I won't let him bully you, especially since you don't have your powers."

"All right," Jonathan replied. "If anything happens, I'll let you know."


	4. A Day Alone

"It looks like the date of Laura and Edward's wedding has been moved up," Margot observed and handed Kol the latest version of the invitation. "I wonder why that is?"

Kol chuckled. "I can think of at least one reason why the date would be moved up and I bet my brother isn't too happy about it."

"So you think your niece is pregnant?" Margot asked. "I mean, that's the reason you mean, right?"

"Well, what other reason could there be to move a wedding up?" Kol asked.

Margot shrugged. "They could just be so in love they couldn't wait."

Kol burst out laughing. "That's hilarious!" He said. "Thanks. I needed a good laugh."

"Why do you think that's so funny?" Margot asked. "You've never loved anyone?"

Kol's gaze darkened. "Enough," he said firmly. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go call the tailor and see if they can move up the fitting for my suit. And I suggest you do the same with your dressmaker." He strode out, leaving Margot open-mouthed. What had that been all about? She didn't know, but she knew she wouldn't hesitate to find out the answer.

For the next couple of days, Kol went out of his way to avoid Margot. Finally, she confronted him about it. "Why are you avoiding me?" She asked. "I thought it was your goal in life to follow me around everywhere and be a big pain in my ass! Are you mad because of that love question I asked you?"

"I thought I made it clear that your last mention of the subject was the end of it!" Kol replied. "I've never been in love before, and even if I intended to start, it wouldn't be with someone as rude and pushy as you!"

"Are you sure?" Margot pressed. "We had a lot of fun the other day, didn't we?"

"We did," Kol replied. "And that's all you'll get from me, nothing more, if that's what you're counting on."

Margot shrugged. "_I'm_ not counting on anything," she said. "It's my sister who wants us to have a deep, meaningful relationship."

Kol scoffed. "Please," he said. "You say that now, but at the end of the day, you're no different than any other woman. You'll trap me like the rest of them have, and refuse to let me go."

Margot crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes. "Excuse me?"

"Don't deny it," Kol replied. "You know it's the truth."

"It's _not_," Margot replied. "Something is clearly wrong with you. When we go to the wedding, I don't want you to pay me. We'll just go as dates and that's all."

"Unless I pay you, you're not coming," Kol replied. "I don't care what my brother says."

"You'll do anything to keep distance between us, won't you?" Margot asked. "I mean, despite the fact that you've moved into my house, slept with me, and made me breakfast on several occasions. You want to let me in, I just know it."

"You're delusional!" Kol replied and gave her a sound slap across the face.

"What was that for?" Margot asked in shock.

"That's for insisting you need to stick your nose where it doesn't belong!" Kol replied, and then strode off.

"Fine, run away!" Margot cried. "I would have preferred to have a discussion about your troubles with you, but now I'll have to go ask someone more cooperative! And I don't think I want to go to the wedding with you anymore. You can keep your damn money!"

Hearing this, Kol zipped back. "Fine," he said. "I'll give it to someone who actually needs it. I'm sure I'll have no trouble finding a woman to come with me. And it'll be money well spent." He disappeared and Margot sighed. He was right about her needing to visit the dressmaker. Between that and finding herself another date for the wedding, she had the rest of her day pretty much booked.

* * *

"Here's your mail," Jonathan said as he plunked down a small pile of letters in front of Amy. "One of them looks like a wedding invitation."

"A wedding invitation?" Amy found the letter he was talking about and read it. "It's for Laura and Edward's wedding. They're moving the date up."

"I don't mean to be indelicate," Jonathan said. "But perhaps it's being moved up because the bride is with child?"

"Maybe," Amy replied. "Or maybe they were just so in love they couldn't wait."

"That could also be," Jonathan agreed. "I completely understand the concept of marrying someone you love as soon as possible so you don't lose them." He eyed her meaningfully and Amy found herself staring back into Jonathan's eyes until they heard the sound of a throat being cleared. They quickly pulled away from each other and Amy began looking through the rest of the pile of mail.

"So what's going on in here?" Klaus asked. "Anything interesting in the mail?"

"Laura and Edward's wedding got moved up. Jonathan thinks it's because Laura is pregnant," Amy replied.

"Pregnant? Laura?" Klaus chuckled. "It's obvious he doesn't know my brother. Elijah would _never _allow that to happen before Laura got married."

"I don't know," Amy replied. "I guess we'll see."

She was just about to go get Savannah, who was napping, when all of a sudden, the baby cried out.

"I'll get her!" Jonathan said immediately.

"Oh, no, you sit," Klaus told him. "You're a guest. You don't need to go to all the trouble."

"It's really no trouble at all," Jonathan replied. "I'd be glad to."

"She's _my_ baby, I'll get her," Klaus said firmly. "You stay right where you are!"

But neither man obeyed the command and they fought each other all the way down the hall until Klaus was able to zip into Savannah's room and shut Jonathan out. But then, Jonathan chuckled as he heard Klaus let out a cry. Then he opened the door. "Problem?" He asked with a smirk. "Anything I can remedy?"

"No," Klaus replied, trying to shield Savannah, who had turned into a giant snake that was slithering out of the crib, from Jonathan's view. "We're fine."

As the snake slithered toward him, Jonathan deftly pointed at it (he'd gotten his powers back upon leaving jail), returning Savannah back to herself, picking her up, kissing her head, and carrying her off to Amy while Klaus followed behind resentfully, his face red with fury.

"Here she is," Jonathan told Amy, setting the baby down in her lap.

"Did something happen?" Amy asked. "Was there a problem?"

"Oh, nothing really," Jonathan replied nonchalantly. "Little sneeze, big snake. I got it taken care of." He eyed Klaus. "Really handy that they gave me back my powers before I left jail, wasn't it?"

Klaus just narrowed his eyes and growled under his breath, but since Amy was present, he didn't take Jonathan's bait. "Yes," he said flatly. "It was fortunate you were there to save the day."

They both sat down and Amy looked between them. "So," she said. "What should we all do now?"

"Well, I'm not leaving this house!" Klaus replied, glaring at Jonathan. "That's for damn sure!"

There was awkward silence and then Jonathan replied, "I could take Savannah out somewhere so that the two of you could have some time alone. Would you like that?"

"Well, yes we would!" Amy replied. "Thank you, Jonathan. You're so sweet!"

"Just where do you think you can take her?" Klaus asked. "You've only recently come from jail and I bet you have no idea where anything is here!"

"You're very kind to express that concern," Jonathan replied, pushing some of his long dark hair out of his eyes. "But let me assure you that I will find a way for Savannah and I to entertain ourselves."

"Well, there you go," Amy replied. "How nice." She went and got Savannah's things and put them all in front of Jonathan, whose eyes widened. "What's all this?" He asked.

"Savannah's things," Amy replied. "I don't know what you'll need, but I've found it's best to be prepared for any potential scenario."

"Well, all right," Jonathan replied. "But how am I supposed to carry all of this and her at the same time?"

That's when Amy held up a red carrier. "Attach this to yourself," she said, taking Savannah, laying her on the floor, and attaching the carrier to Jonathan. "Then Savannah fits in all nice and snug like this," she plunked Savannah in the carrier, and the baby didn't seem fazed at all, even giving him a smile. "And now you have your hands free."

"Well, this is certainly useful," Jonathan replied. Amy helped him get all of Savannah's things in hand, then the two of them popped off to who knew where, leaving Klaus and Amy alone.

* * *

"Wasn't that so sweet of Jonathan to take Savannah and give us time to ourselves?" She asked Klaus. "Despite his past troubles, he's really a very sweet man."

Klaus scoffed. "If he's so wonderful, why don't you marry _him_ then? Since you clearly have no trouble with letting him move into _our_ house, make _me_ look like fool, and bond with _our_ daughter."

"He's not the one making you look like a fool," Amy countered. "You're doing that on your own, and I don't understand why."

"Because he's your fucking ex-fiance, damn it!" Klaus exploded. "And he _clearly_ still has designs on you. I hope you're not so stupid that you can't see it."

Amy's eyes narrowed. "And even if he _does_ still have feelings for me, why should that matter? If he makes any overtures, I'm not planning to return them, even if you keep acting like this and I become _sorely_ tempted to so I can be with a man who shows me something other than jealousy! This is supposed to be a nice time for the two of us! Why do you insist on ruining it?"

"Well, why did you insist on inviting that man into our house without asking me first?" Klaus shot back.

"Well, it's not like you don't have a house guest of your own you didn't consult _me_ about!" Amy said.

"Well, Lucy is my daughter, not my ex-fiance!" Klaus replied. "It's a completely different thing!"

Just then, Lucy strolled in. "Would you two mind keeping it down?" She asked. "I'm in the middle of a piece, and all this yelling is making it very difficult for me to concentrate."

"Sorry, dear," Klaus replied and moved away from Amy. "What are you working on? Can I see?"

"Sure!" Lucy nodded. "Why not?"

"I think I want to see this too," Amy replied.

Klaus chuckled. "I honestly don't know if you'd be able to handle it. Sometimes, Lucy's work is a bit much for people."

"Oh, let her come and see it," Lucy replied. "As long as she knows she's doing so at her own risk."

Amy gulped nervously, but followed the pair of them to Klaus' studio, which Lucy was temporarily using. She brought them in front of a painting with a dark blue background, and several images of the same dark-haired, blue eyed boy. He was being murdered in a different way in each one. Amy's stomach turned a little. "Can I-" she began. "Can I ask who the boy is in the picture and why you seem to want him dead so badly?"

"It's my brother," Lucy replied. "He's the reason why I'm here. I'm dating his father, my brother and I got in a fight, then his father picked my brother over me and kicked me out. This is the way I deal with revenge. Sam is a vampire, so not all the ways I have him dying in the picture would kill him in real life, but it's cathartic nonetheless. And it's also why I came here, instead of going to Mom and Uncle Elijah's where I would normally go. Mom is also the mom of my brother, so she'd give me an earful for fighting with him too, and I just don't want to have to deal with that."

"_Oh!" _Amy said. "I understand now. You have the same mother and different fathers, so that's why you're dating your twin brother's father and it's okay."

"Yep," Lucy nodded. "My mother has a vast and complex love life, and that is one of the many results of it."

"So how long do you intend to stay?" Klaus asked Lucy.

She shrugged. "As long as Sam is at Damon's, and who knows how long that'll be. It's not a problem, is it?"

"No!" Klaus shook his head. "We have the space and I rarely see you, so this is a treat!"

"Good!" Lucy nodded. "And thank you, Daddy."

"Now we'll leave you alone to continue thinking up other horribly gruesome ways to murder Sam," Klaus said and began nudging Amy toward the door. They exited the studio and Amy let out a shiver. "Those pictures of hers were just awful. So much darkness. How can one person be so mean to another person?"

"Actually, I find it sort of refreshing," Klaus replied. "At least in Lucy's case. She was raised primarily by my brother, so she's gotten his annoying habit of ignoring her darkness or thinking it's wrong to act out on those feelings, and that suppressing them is the right thing to do. Her siblings are the exact opposite, having been raised by me, so whenever I'm around Lucy and see the triumph of nurture over nature, it's very reassuring to me."

"Oh," Amy nodded. "All right. I suppose coming from you, that's as good of an explanation as anything." Then, she sighed. "I don't wanna fight anymore," she said, putting her arms around him and giving him a kiss. "What do you say we just go to bed instead?"

Klaus sighed, his hands moving down her back and over her butt, giving it a squeeze. "Oh, all right," he said. Amy grinned and zapped them off to bed. Once they were in the room, the door locked behind them, they began ripping off each other's clothes, their body temperatures rising.

"I could have just zapped us in here naked," Amy panted. "But that would've taken some of the fun away, wouldn't it?"

"Oh, yes," Klaus grinned and then ripped off her bra with his teeth. She let out a shriek and held on to him, relishing in the feel of his bare skin against hers before he unzipped, picked her up, held her against the wall, and pushed into her.

"Oh, yes!" She cried. "Oh, _god_, yes!" She shook her head so that her hair fanned out like a wall of flames, grunting as he pushed in and out again and again until finally, she collapsed in his arms. "Take me to bed," she panted. "Please."

Smugly, he lay her down on the bed. Her body was covered in a sheen of sweat, as was her hair. Klaus knew she was tired. He _knew_ he should give her a break, but as he gazed as her beautiful, bare body laid out before her, he couldn't help but reach between her thighs and give her a little massage. He thought she would scold him, but instead, she closed her eyes and moaned, giving in to his pleasurable touching. "So good," she whispered. "_Much_ better."

He climbed into bed, his lips close to her ear. "I know you're tired," he said. "But I couldn't resist touching you."

"You don't hear me complaining," Amy whispered back. "But you'll have to wait a little bit for your turn."

He kissed her. "As long as you love me most," he said, "I don't care how long it takes."

* * *

When Jonathan arrived home with Savannah, Klaus insisted on prolonging their sex and being as loud about it as possible, but Amy nixed that. Instead, she got out of bed, put on panties, a bra, and a robe, and went to meet Jonathan. When he saw her, his eyebrow went up. "I see by your red complexion that you took advantage of your time alone?"

"We did," Amy nodded. "Thank you. So what did you and Savannah do all this time?"

"I was at a loss about what to do with her at first," he admitted. "But then we went to the park, and there was a nice little group of children there with their mothers, who all praised me for being such an attentive father to my child. I am ashamed to say that I just thanked them and didn't correct their assumption about Savannah's paternity. Are you angry with me about that?"

"No!" Amy shook her head. "You'll probably never see those people again, and even though Klaus is literally her father, the connection you've made with her puts you in a father-like position, doesn't it?"

"Why, yes," Jonathan nodded. "I-I guess it does." Amy helped Jonathan remove the carrier and took Savannah in her arms. "Thank you so much for watching Savannah today," she said to him. "It was very nice of you."

"It's my pleasure," Jonathan replied. "Even though she's no Rachel Mary Putnam, she's the next best thing."

Amy chuckled. "That's what we would have named any daughter we'd have had. I can't believe you remember that."

"Well, I have no reason to forget," he said, giving her a meaningful look, and giving Savannah one more kiss on the head. "I think I need to go wash myself. I'll be down promptly for dinner."

"All right," Amy replied. "See you then, Jonathan." He started to go and then turned. "One last thing," he said. "When you and Klaus go to that wedding, I'll watch Savannah then too. Not to worry."

"Oh, Jonathan!" Amy cried. "You're too good to me."


	5. Home Alone

"So," Amy asked Klaus, "Are we going to the reception, or not?"

"I think we've already paid our dues," Klaus told her. "I've had enough and I want to go home to Savannah."

"Oh, come on!" Amy protested. "The reception will have cake! Selina makes good cake."

Klaus just gave her a look. "If that's all you can come up with, you're going to have to try harder."

Amy looked out the window as the sky began to darken. "I don't like the looks of this weather," she said. "I really don't think we should be driving. Let's park on the side of the road until it passes so we don't get in an accident. I'll call Jonathan and tell him we're being delayed."

"So what are we supposed to do while we're just parked on the side of the road?" Klaus asked. "Amy, you're being ridiculous!"

Amy ignored him. "Jonathan? It's Amy. Klaus and I have decided to delay getting home because of an approaching storm. Are you okay with that? Thank you so much. Bye!" She ended the call and smiled at Klaus. "Okay," she instructed. "Pull over."

Rolling his eyes, Klaus pulled on to the shoulder. "What are you doing?" He asked as he watched her climb into the spacious trunk and start stripping down.

"Showing you what we can do with ourselves until the storm passes," she winked. "And if anyone comes to hassle us, you can make them go away, right?"

"What?" Klaus asked as her bra came off.

"Oh, who cares?" Amy asked, not wanting to repeat herself. "Just get back here!"

Klaus chuckled. "So impatient," he murmered as he climbed over the seats and next to her in the trunk. "I usually don't like that in a woman, but in this case, I'll make an exception." She chuckled as he fell into her arms and kissed her deeply, easing her back onto the floor of the trunk, his hands cupping and squeezing her supple, milky breasts as she looked up at him with a wicked smile. "Come on," she grinned. "Is that all you've got?"

Klaus grinned back. "I wasn't sure what you wanted from me," he said. "If you wanted to be quiet so we wouldn't attract undue attention."

Amy scoffed. "Please!" She said as thunder cracked overhead and rain lashed down the windows. "Listen to all that noise out there. Do you really think anyone will hear us even if we _do_ get a little loud?"

"That's the spirit!" Klaus replied, unzipping his pants and tossing them aside. They resumed kissing, pulling their bodies close to one another until they couldn't be any closer. Then Klaus paused, raising his head up.

"Why did you stop?" Amy panted. "Don't stop!"

"Don't fret, love," he said to her, brushing her sweaty, tangled hair out of her eyes. "I was merely stopping so I could change directions is all."

"Change directions?" Amy asked, eyebrow raised. "That sounds interesting. You may proceed."

"Yes, ma'am," Klaus replied, and worked down her stomach, past her belly button, then removed her panties so he could slip his tongue inside her and _really_ make her scream. He suceeded, and fortunately, the scream was drowned out by a loud boom of thunder. Eventually, however, they heard a knock on the window. Sighing, Klaus rolled off her, got his pants on the best he could, and made the way to the window, turning on the car for a moment, so he could open the window. "Yes, officer?" He asked. "May we help you?"

"I was about to ask you the same question," the officer replied. "Are you having car trouble? Several motorists have called to report your stranded car."

"Actually, we were just waiting out the storm," Amy replied. "We're fine."

"Well, I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to move along," the officer said. "Because whatever you've been doing in this car, it's not legal to do on the side of a road."

"All right, officer," Klaus replied, grabbing his collar and pulling him through the open window so that they were eye to eye. "We'll take that into consideration. You can go on your way, now." He then pushed him backwards onto the road and Amy shut her eyes as he stumbled into the path of an oncoming car and was hit. "Oh, dear god," she said. "I think we should go home now. Besides killing that man who was only trying to do his job, you've also killed the mood."

"You're right," Klaus replied. "It's probably about time we extricated our daughter from the vice grip of your ex-fiance anyway."

"So no wedding reception?" Amy asked.

"No," Klaus said flatly. "But if you went and saw Selina later, I'm sure she'd give you some cake."

"Well, that's something, I guess," Amy sighed as Klaus dressed and climbed into the front seat of the car to drive them home.

* * *

Jonathan was still grinning as he sat in the kitchen with Savannah, who was waiting in her high chair. "Your mother called and said she and your father are delayed, which means you and I get to have more fun!"

He began dancing around the room with her, which made her giggle happily, and then pretended to collapse on the sofa in a tired heap.

"All right," he said to her. "What should we do now?" Just then, a boom of thunder made her burst into tears. "It's all right, darling," he said, holding her to himself. "It's just a storm. It won't hurt you. I'm here, I'll keep you safe." He held her until she stopped crying, and then laid her down on the carpet to rub her tummy. "You like that, don't you?" He smiled. Then, as she watched, he produced a shiny new toy for her out of thin air. It resembled a rattle. She reached for it, he put it in her little hand, then he laughed as she stuck it in her mouth and sucked on it contentedly. Yes, he thought to himself, this was the life. It didn't matter if she wasn't his. At least for a little while, he could pretend she was.

Then the mood was broken as the front door opened and Amy called out, "Jonathan? We're home!" At the sound of her voice, Jonathan scrambled to his feet and picked up Savannah, taking her to the front door. "How was the wedding?" He asked.

"Lovely," Amy replied. "Although apparently, Klaus has no desire to go to the reception."

"You can go," Klaus told her. "No one is stopping you. Go, stuff your face with cake. I don't care. I just don't feel like going with you."

Amy looked back and forth between Klaus and Jonathan. "Could I really do that and leave the two you alone with Savannah? Or would I come back and find one or both of you dead? That's not something I want."

That's when Jonathan stepped forward. "If you'd like an escort, I'll go with you, despite the fact that I don't know anyone at this reception."

"Klaus?" Amy asked. "Is that all right with you?"

Klaus hesitated. On the one hand, he didn't want this son of a bitch anywhere _near_ Amy. On the other, him not being here would allow Klaus to reclaim Savannah's loyalty, and test Amy's...just to be sure she was as loyal to him as she claimed to be. "All right," he said, to Amy's surprise. "You two can go and have fun. Just make sure there's no funny business."

"Sir!" Jonathan cried, looking offended. "I can assure you that I have nothing but the most honorable intentions toward your wife."

"Oh, don't you bullshit me!" Klaus replied. "I know every second of the day you think about what it would be like to be with her, and that you would just _love_ to spirit her and Savannah away when you think I'm not looking. You've thought that. Don't deny it."

"Have you?" Amy asked Jonathan.

He sighed. "I cannot deny that from time to time, I _do_ have those thoughts," he confessed. "But I promise that if you and I go to this reception, they will be the farthest thing from my mind."

"All right," Amy replied after a moment. "All right, we'll go. But as friends, that's all. Do I make myself clear, Jonathan?" She asked him while Klaus smirked behind her back.

"Yes," Jonathan bowed his head. "You do."

Then Klaus cleared his throat. "Before you go, give me my daughter." He came over and gently detached Savannah from Jonathan, then he and Amy left.

"Miss me?" Klaus asked. He noticed that she was sucking on her new toy and gently took it from her. "What's this?" He asked her. "Did _he_ give it to you?" It was then that Savannah buried her head in Klaus' shoulder. "I'll take that as a 'Yes'," he said and took her to her room, pulling out the big bear he'd gotten her when she was first born and trying to get her to play with that instead.

Savannah rolled over, stared at the bear for a little bit, then tried to get her tiny mouth around the bear's foot, becoming frustrated when she couldn't and bursting into tears.

"All right , all right," Klaus replied, picking her up and giving her back Jonathan's toy, which went right into her mouth before she lay her head on Klaus' shoulder. "I get the point." He sat down with her in the rocking chair and didn't move from that spot, just reveling in the fact that he was holding on to his daughter and that she didn't seem to mind. Eventually, he tucked her into bed, then went to the living room, turned on the TV, and waited for Amy and Jonathan to return home.


	6. Setting A Trap

"So how did things go with you and Savannah?" Amy asked Klaus. "Does she still like you?"

"Yes," Klaus nodded. "I didn't doubt for a second that she would."

"Are you sure?" Amy asked. "Cause if you were worried, you could tell me."

"Well, now that we know Jonathan _does_ in fact have designs on you," Klaus said. "Can I throw him out? Please?"

"If he makes a move, I'll have a talk with Astrid about relocating him," Amy replied firmly. "I promise you that. But for now, let's let him stay."

"But you heard what he said!" Klaus replied. "How can you even let him live here after that?"

"Cause I can kind of see where he's coming from," Amy replied. "Not only were we engaged, but when I broke it off, we never really had closure. So you can't blame the poor guy for thinking about the life he would've had." Amy sighed and Klaus gave her a look. "Go find Astrid," he ordered. "Tell her what's going on with Jonathan and ask her to deal with him. Cause if you don't, I will, and I know that'll upset you."

"Give him one more chance," Amy repeated. "For me, please."

Klaus' eyes narrowed. "All right," he said. "I'll show him forgiveness, kindness, and mercy for you, Amy. But remember, this is his _last_ chance."

Amy sighed. "All right," she said. "He'll behave himself, I promise."

* * *

After that, Klaus tried his hardest to be civil to Jonathan for Amy's sake, even if it was _very_ difficult. But keeping all his anger inside made it worse for innocent humans on the street, and one night, after gorging on many an innocent civilian, Klaus came home with blood all over his face and shirt, his fangs bared and breathing hard.

Unfortunately, Jonathan, who was carrying Savannah at the time, was the first person to see him. Jonathan's eyes widened, he hit Klaus with a stunning spell, and ran back to Amy, clutching Savannah tight.

"Amy!" He cried, breathing hard. "We have to leave now," he said. "Pack Savannah's things and come with me."

"Why?" Amy asked, looking worried. "What's happened?"

"You've wed yourself to a madman!" Jonathan exclaimed. "He's stunned for the moment, but I don't know how long that will last, so you have to hurry!"

"What makes you say that?" Amy asked.

"He just stumbled in here covered in blood and looking angry!" Jonathan answered. "You look less concerned than you should be."

"Cause there's nothing to be concerned about," Amy replied. "Klaus is a vampire. He drinks blood. Seeing him come home covered in it is not something to worry about."

"But what if he's still hungry?" Jonathan asked. "He could start on you and Savannah next, like animals that eat their young!"

Klaus wouldn't eat us," Amy replied. "I offered to have him feed on me once and he was revolted by the idea. So don't you worry."

Just then, they heard a sharp, angry voice call out. "Amy?" Klaus growled. "Where are you?"

"In our room, dear!" Amy called back.

After that, Jonathan's eyes widened again and he went to block the door with his body. "Are you mad to invite him in here?" Jonathan asked. "He could hurt you!"

"No, he won't," Amy replied calmly. "I told you that, Jonathan. You're worrying for nothing."

The warlock sighed and gazed at Amy pitifully. "He's really got you in his claws, doesn't he, you poor girl?"

"No," Amy shook her head. "I'm fine. Now, I'm sure you can fine something to do with yourself." He was still bracing his body against the door when it burst off its hinges and sent him sprawling to the floor.

"He used magic on me!" Klaus told Amy, kicking Jonathan's prone body as he struggled to get up. "And with no provocation at all."

"He was just concerned for Savannah and me when he saw you were covered in blood," Amy explained. "But I assured him there was nothing to worry about."

"Good," Klaus nodded, panting. "I need a shower. Wanna join me?" He then kicked Jonathan in the head before he went into the bathroom.

"Of course," Amy nodded, her eyes worried as she eyed Jonathan's prone figure. "I'll be there in a minute." After Klaus disappeared behind the bathroom door, Amy helped Jonathan to his feet. "You wouldn't mind watching Savannah while Klaus and I do this, would you?" She asked.

"Of course," Jonathan nodded, rubbing his head with a wince. "Not to worry."

"Thanks!" Amy replied and gave him a brief hug before heading into the bathroom and joining Klaus in the shower. Jonathan stayed there for a few minutes, hoping she would come out, but once he began hearing cries of ecstasy, he figured it was time to get out of there and check on Savannah.

* * *

"I'm worried for you," Jonathan told Savannah when he came to her room and picked her up. "Your mother says things with your father are all right, but I just don't think that being around a man like him is safe for either of you. So I'm gonna take things into my own hands, Savannah. I'm going to take you and your mother to a safe place where he'll never be able to hurt you. But it wouldn't be prudent to do it during the day. We'll have to do it tonight when there's less of a chance of your father catching us." He paused and kissed the baby's cheek. "Just be patient, darling. I'll get you out of here."

* * *

"So," James told Klaus over the phone that night. "Have you had anything happen that would allow me to convict Jonathan Putnam and drag his sorry ass back to jail? Or, even better, to Luke, cause he's used magic to interfere with your relationship with Amy? Please tell me you have!"

"Not yet," Klaus replied. "But I think we're damn close. I went out on a hunt today and came back _covered_ in blood. Jonathan saw me and was terrified. It was quite humorous, actually. Now, he'll probably get it into his head that I'm not a suitable person to be around either my daughter or my wife and do something stupid."

"_Excellent_," James replied. "Keep up the good work and let me know as soon as anything good happens."

"Oh, I might not even need to tell you," Klaus replied. "It could be all over the witch news. But if not, yeah, I'll let you know."

"Good," James replied. "Good night, and good luck."

"Thanks," Klaus replied. "Goodnight."

"Who was on the phone?" Amy asked as Klaus came and got into bed next to her.

"James," Klaus replied. "Lenora's husband, you know. He and I are chummy."

"Well, it's nice to know you can be friends with warlocks," Amy replied. "You don't think you could give Jonathan a chance as well?"

"Sorry, love, no," Klaus replied. "Now, if I'd met him and he'd had no prior connection to you whatsoever, maybe. But since he desperately wants to bed you and is not subtle about it, I'll never be nice to him. End of story."

"He might have those thoughts," Amy replied. "But he'd _never_ be foolish enough to act on them. It could get him in big trouble!"

"Never underestimate a determined man in love, Amy," Klaus replied. "Trust me on this, cause I know."

Amy sighed. "Well, whatever," she said. Then Klaus took her in his arms and they made love until they both passed out, with Amy having just enough strength to turn off the lights before she shut her eyes for good.

* * *

Later that night, when Jonathan was sure everyone was asleep, he went into Savannah's room first, dabbing a little bit of potion onto her closed eyes, and then, as quietly as he could, he did the same to Amy, before getting the pair of them together and taking them to the safe house he'd gotten specifically for this particular venture. After tucking both of them into bed, he marveled over his good fortune. Klaus hadn't woken up _once_ to stop him, even though he'd been _sure_ that that would be the end result.

"Some days, I'm just lucky, I guess," he said to himself. Then got in bed next to Amy and didn't open his eyes again until morning.

* * *

"So, what happened?" James asked Klaus the next morning. "Did the plan work?"

"Yes," Klaus nodded. "Both Amy and Savannah are gone. Now hurry up and find them so you can fix whatever it is he did to her. I'm all right with having Amy temporarily under his spell, but I don't want it to go on forever."

"Of course," James nodded. "I'll come and pick you up, then we can go talk to Astrid."

"All right," Klaus replied. "See you in a few minutes."

"And just what are _you_ up to, Daddy?" Lucy asked, coming up behind her father and causing him to start. "Nothing nefarious, I hope?"

"What I'm doing, I'm doing with the best intentions," Klaus defended himself to his daughter. "Although, I admit that some people, like your uncle and possibly Amy might think of this as nefarious and not be happy with me."

"Just what is it that you did?" Lucy asked.

"Well, you know how badly I want that man out of my house," Klaus replied. "So I've been talking with James, who _also_ has a problem with this arrangement, and we thought that if we could get Jonathan arrested again, he'd be sent somewhere else, like jail, and he'd never trouble Amy and me again."

Lucy's eyes widened. "I understand you don't like the guy, Daddy, but is it really fair to get him put in jail? What trumped up charges are you gonna use?"

"Ah," Klaus grinned. "That's the best part: the charges _won't_ be trumped up. They'll be legitimate. I'm just luring him into a situation that'll force him to do bad things cause there's no way he'd do them normally."

"There has to be a better way to deal with him," Lucy replied. "Can't you just tell him how you feel? Start a dialogue or something? That would be more polite and wouldn't land anyone in jail."

"No," Klaus replied shortly. "And you know, if it was your _sister _who was here, she'd tell me I had a good idea! You're _my_ daughter. Stop talking nonsense like that!"

"Well, I'm sorry if I can't! And it's not nonsense!" Lucy called after him as he strode away from her. "But I hope you get what you want anyway."

"I know you don't mean that," Klaus called back. "But thank you."

Then Lucy sat down, rolled her eyes, and wondered if maybe she should have gone to her uncle's after all.

* * *

"So this is the house?" Klaus asked as he and James appeared at the house where Jonathan was supposedly keeping Amy and Savannah. "Kind of small, isn't it?"

"Well, if Putnam meant for it to be a secret," James replied, "he wouldn't want something that screams 'Here I am, there are kidnapped people in here' right?"

"Well, I suppose," Klaus replied and then followed James up to the front door. James kicked it in and the men strolled inside. Amy was the first person they saw, and Klaus ran up to her and put his arms around her. She shrieked, pushed him away, and hit him on the head with the frying pan she'd just cooked eggs in and he fell to the ground.

"Are you all right?" James asked her.

"Who are you?" Amy asked, her eyes wide and frightened. "And what makes you think you have the right to barge into my house at this time of day for no reason?"

"Don't worry," James told her, showing her his badge. "I'm an officer of the law."

"Oh," Amy sighed. "Good. Arrest that man, please!" She said, pointing at Klaus. "He put his hands all over me and I don't even know him!"

"You don't?" James asked, one eyebrow raised. "You don't recognize your own husband?"

"He's not my husband!" Amy replied. "My husband is Jonathan Putnam, and I don't know who this man is!"

"He's your husband," James replied. "But you honestly have no memory of that?"

"No," Amy shook her head. "Cause that never happened!"

James got down on his knees and helped Klaus to his feet. "Do you have the picture I told you to bring?" He asked him.

"Yes," Klaus replied, pulling out a picture of them together. "Here's a photo of us," He told Amy. And Savannah is with us. See?"

"Her name isn't Savannah," Amy replied. "It's Rachel. Rachel Mary Putnam."

"No, it's not!" Klaus yelled impatiently, his hands becoming fists. "You're my wife, she's our daughter, Savannah Audrey Mikaelson. The picture proves that!"

"No, it doesn't," Amy shook her head. "Now if it was a wedding photo, maybe I'd believe you, but even _those_ can be faked."

"Fuck," Klaus whispered running his fingers through his hair. "Why did we have to be married on the island where they don't give you any damn wedding photos?"

"I think you should take this and go now," Amy replied, handing him the photo just as Savannah began crying. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go take care of my daughter."

James and Klaus left the house and Klaus pulled James up by his collar. "What will we do now?" He asked. "You said this would be easy to fix!"

"And it _will _be!" James assured him. "The second Putnam comes back here, we'll arrest him cause clearly he used something on Amy to make her forget you and fall in love with him, and that would fall under 'using your powers to mess with love', which, as no one knows better than me, is not only against the law, but a major offense."

"You just better hope for your own sake that he gets back soon," Klaus replied. "Or I'll get angry. And you won't like me when I'm angry."

* * *

"I hope you and your date had fun at the reception," Margot snapped at Kol. "Cause she looked kind of trampy to me!"

Kol chuckled as he watched her stomp in the house ahead of him. "'Fun' doesn't begin to describe what we had. How about you? I saw you looking at that guy Amy came in with. Who was he?"

"Nobody," Margot huffed. "Just Jonathan. He's Amy's ex and I made the mistake of spending time with him too."

"Does Amy still like him, do you think?" Kol asked. "Is that why she was so desperate to pair you off with me? So you don't get any ideas and steal her man?"

"No," Margot replied. "How stupid can you be? Do you not realize how committed she is to Savannah and your brother? Klaus probably just didn't want to come, so Jonathan was there as an escort."

"So..." Kol began. "Wanna go to bed?"

"You really don't stand on ceremony, do you?" Margot asked, surprised by his bluntness, though she shouldn't have been. "Why didn't you just go to bed with your date? Did you wait because you thought I'd go to bed with you for free?"

"No," Kol said, glaring at her. "Never mind." He stomped off and she sighed. Maybe she'd been too hard on him. She hurried to his room. His door was closed. "Sorry I was so hard on you!" She called. "Now would you like to be rough with me?" When he gave her no response, she opened the door and came in anyway.

"Go away," Kol replied without looking up. "I never said you could come in."

"Oh, yeah?" Margot replied. "Why don't you come over here and make me?"

"All right," Kol replied, getting off the bed to come give her a hard shove out the open door. She hit her head against the hallway wall, but got up immediately and pushed him back, ripping his shirt in the process. He looked down at it and growled. "I just bought this yesterday!" He cried, picking her up by her hair. She punched him in the gut, and as vengeance, he ripped her shirt too, revealing just her bare breasts beneath the fabric.

"See anything you like?" She asked, licking her lips.

Kol then shut his eyes. "You little..." She chuckled and the ringing of her laughter in his ears made him even more irritated. He pulled her shirt off the rest of the way and kissed her to stop that ear splitting laughter of hers. She paused for a moment, gave him a good hard slap, and then pulled him to her again, his hands cupping and massaging her breasts briefly before moving down her thighs and under her skirt. He lowered her to the floor and slowly removed her shoes, panty hose, and panties, then proceeded to touch her with varying degrees of pressure before she shrieked and wriggled out of her skirt, and gave Kol a clear playing field. He grinned and leaned down to kiss her, and when he came back up, she said, "Aren't you gonna undress too?"

"Oh, all right," he said and threw off his shirt and pants with abandon. "If you really want me to."

"I see you don't wear underwear," she observed.

"What of it?" Kol asked. "You weren't wearing a bra."

"I wasn't criticizing you. I was just making an observation," Margot replied. "And kudos to you for making this process easier."

"Same to you, my darling," Kol replied, then pushed into her as she clutched him for dear life, repeating his actions several more times before he finally rolled off her as they both panted loudly in the hallway.

"And to think we did that so close to your bed," Margot replied. "Would it have killed us to walk a few feet?"

"Yes," Kol replied, putting a few fingers under her chin and turning her to face him. "What's the fun of sex in bed? _Your sister_ has sex in bed. Is that who you are, Margot?"

"Not really," she said to him with a grin. She got up and came back a few minutes later, a set of handcuffs dangling from one finger. "Next time, we use these," she said. "I was a cop for Halloween one year, and I was _really_ harsh on anyone who broke the law."

Kol chuckled. "And after that, what would you say to being my little French maid?"

Margot grinned. "In your dreams!" She cried.

"Oh, definitely," Kol replied with a grin. "Every night. I guarantee it."


	7. Catching A Criminal

It didn't take long for Jonathan to return. Klaus and James watched him appear from behind a bush and stride toward the house. "There he is," Klaus whispered. "Do we get him now?"

"Not like this," James replied. "If he sees us, that'll give him a chance to run away. Stand still."

"Why?" Klaus asked suspiciously.

"Because I'm going to make us invisible," James replied. "That's why."

"Well, that's handy," Klaus replied as James applied the spell first to Klaus and then himself. "I can still see you," Klaus observed. "Are you sure the spell worked?"

"Yes," James nodded. "I can see you, you can see me, but _he _won't be able to see either of us."

With that in mind, they followed Jonathan into the house, getting in just as the front door closed. They followed Jonathan into Savannah's room, and when he wasn't looking, James swiftly removed the spell. An eager Klaus picked up Savannah from her crib, but after she let out an ear-splitting shriek at the sight of him, it became apparent to both James and Klaus that Amy hadn't been the only one affected by whatever Jonathan had done.

"You!" Jonathan whispered, as he turned to face James and Klaus.

"Yes, Putnam," Klaus replied and began choking him. "What have you done to my family?"

"He won't be able to tell you if you've strangled the life out of him," James replied. "Let him go for now. We'll take him to Astrid and once she tells us that we can take him to Luke's, you can be as rough as you want."

Resentfully, Klaus let Jonathan go. "So," James asked again. "What have you done?"

"Yes," Klaus replied. "Why don't my wife and my daughter recognize me?"

"It's for their own good," Jonathan said. "Frankly, I think at this point, they're much better off."

Klaus punched him then and he fell to the floor. "That's for going after me with the frying pan!" He cried.

"Wow," James said in amazement. "Good aim."

"Thank you," Klaus replied. "So, what do we do now?"

"We get him to remove the spell from Savannah and Amy, then we take him to Astrid," James replied. He went and got a bucket of water, then dumped it all over Jonathan's prone body. "All right," he said. "You remove whatever it is you've done to Amy and Savannah, and then we're taking you back to jail."

* * *

"Well, Astrid," James cried as he and Klaus dragged a struggling, bruised, and bleeding Jonathan into her office with Amy and Savannah following behind. "Here he is. Can we stick him back where he belongs now? After he takes the spell off of Savannah and Amy, of course."

"What?" Astrid asked, looking at Jonathan in dismay. "What have you done now, Mr. Putnam?"

"Order these barbarians to let me go, and I'll explain myself," Jonathan replied.

"Let him go," Astrid told them. They resentfully loosened their grips and Jonathan sat down. "What I'm about to tell you might sound bad," he began, but I did what I did purely out of love and concern for Amy."

Klaus snorted. "Oh, please," he replied. "I think we all know why you did it and love and concern was not part of it."

"And what would you know about love?" Jonathan replied. "Can you say without a doubt that you love Amy as much as I do?"

"Well, yes!" Klaus replied. "And I don't have to mess with her mind to prove it! I could, but I wouldn't."

"You messed with Amy's mind?" Astrid asked in dismay. "Mr. Putnam, I had such high hopes for you!"

"You don't understand!" Jonathan cried. "He," Jonathan pointed at Klaus, "came home just yesterday, looking beastly and covered in blood. If you'd have seen him, you wouldn't blame me for worrying about Amy and Savannah's safety!"

"Just what did you do, Mr. Putnam?" Astrid asked.

"I dosed both Amy and Savannah with potion so they would have an alternate set of memories that only included me and not him," Jonathan replied quietly, not meeting Astrid's eyes.

"See?" James cried. "He interfered with Klaus and Amy's relationship for purely self-serving reasons, and he used magic to do it! So, when do we send him to Luke's, huh? Right this minute, I hope."

"No," Astrid replied firmly, causing James' jaw to drop. "This is no longer the eighteenth century, James. We now have more civilized ways of dealing with people than we did when you were punished."

"So just what _will_ you do with him?" James asked.

"Well," Astrid sighed. "It seems that what compelled Mr. Putnam to do what he did was not malice, but a misguided sense of affection for Amy and Savannah, which will not be gotten rid of by torture or a stay in jail. Instead, I think it would be best for him to come and stay with Alistair and me, so my husband can discuss this situation with him, and possibly help him see the light, like he did with you, Klaus."

"Wait," James complained. "I take vengeance against my wife and her lover for breaking my heart and I get the maximum punishment, whereas when Jonny here does exactly the same sort of thing, all he gets is a slap on the wrist and chat time with Alistair?"

"Well, unlike you," Astrid pointed out, "Jonathan never killed anyone. You did. Not that what he did wasn't wrong. But it wasn't _as_ wrong as your wrong, which is why his punishment is less severe than yours."

"So he's going to live with you and Alistair?" Klaus asked, feeling light and giddy. "Meaning, he won't be coming back to my house to bug me?"

"No," Astrid shook her head. "I think we've passed the point where that's a good idea."

"All right," Jonathan nodded. "If that's what you've decided, then it's what I must do. But I believe strongly that I've been wrongly judged."

Klaus scoffed. "Try explaining that to my terrified wife," he said.

"I would have, if I'd had time," Jonathan replied bitingly. "But as you and Mr. Black were dragging me away, you didn't give me much."

"Hmmm," Klaus began. "I wonder why."

"_Anyway_," Astrid broke in. "Klaus, bring Jonathan's things back here, please, and I will take him home with me this evening."

"All right," Klaus nodded. "That won't be a problem for me at all."

"Good," Astrid replied, gently gesturing for Amy to come forward with Savannah. It took a bit of pressuring, but finally, the spell was removed, and Jonathan watched, his face full of pain, as Amy ran into Klaus' arms.

"Are you all right?" Klaus asked her.

"Yes," Amy breathed. "I'm fine." She handed Savannah to him. This time, the baby looked at him with a smile. "Well, that's a nice change," Klaus grinned.

Amy then turned to Astrid. "Can we go home?" She asked. "Please?"

"Yes," Astrid nodded. "You may. And I'm awfully sorry for my part in what happened to you."

"It's all right," Amy replied. "I don't blame you, Astrid." Then Klaus escorted Amy out of the building, leaving James and Astrid to deal with Jonathan.

* * *

"I just can't believe he did that me!" Amy said as they all got inside the house.

"Don't think about it," Klaus ordered. "Please. I don't like seeing you in pain."

"It's just that I thought he was my friend, someone I could trust even though we weren't together anymore," Amy sighed. "But I guess you were right all along, weren't you, Klaus?" She sighed. "I feel like such an idiot!"

"Of course I wouldn't gloat," Klaus replied. "But it appears so. I have to deliver his things to Astrid tonight, but of course you don't have to come."

"I wasn't planning on it," Amy replied. Then she took Savannah to sit on the sofa. "I don't want this to happen again," she said.

"I don't want it to happen to you either," Klaus replied. "And I might have an idea to help Savannah."

"Oh?" Amy asked. "And what is it?"

"It's something you might have some objection to," Klaus replied. "But just hear me out."

"After what we just went through," Amy replied, "if you think something will help, I definitely won't be objecting."

"Good," Klaus replied. "Cause I was thinking about putting blood in Savannah's formula. Selina and I usually waited until the children's teeth came in, but I don't see the harm of doing it earlier."

"Whatever you think is right," Amy replied. Klaus then put Savannah in her high chair and went to the kitchen, filling a bottle with formula, then cutting his wrist and letting his blood drip into the bottle too, before he shut it and shook it up a little. Then, he brought it out and gave it to Savannah. The second the mixture was in her mouth, her eyes changed, and she began squirming like crazy, moving her mouth as if she were baring fangs that weren't yet there.

"What's happening to her?" Amy asked in alarm. "Is she okay?"

"Yes," Klaus grinned proudly, patting the little girl's head. "It's the effects of the blood. Don't worry. They aren't permanent."

"Good, because they nearly gave me a heart attack," Amy said, holding her hand to her heart. "She looks like a little monster."

Once the bottle was empty, Klaus brought a normal-looking Savannah back to Amy. "Better?" He asked her.

"Yes," Amy replied, hugging her baby. "But I suppose the more I see her like she was, I'll get used to it and it won't be such a shock for me."

"I hope so," Klaus replied. "Cause that's how she's gonna have to be for the rest of her life."

* * *

Later, after he returned from bringing Jonathan back his things, Amy was waiting for him on the sofa. "I've put Savannah to bed," she said. "Now, I think you and I should go."

"I couldn't agree more," Klaus replied. Then he grinned as she zapped herself into a light pink negligee right in front of him. "All right," she grinned. "Let's go."

Klaus picked her up, put her over his shoulder, and carried her off to their bed, giving her a pat on the bottom along the way. After they were both undressed, they didn't start making love right away. Instead, they just lay in each other's arms for awhile. "This is nice," Amy sighed. "Than you for coming to rescue me, Klaus, even though I had no idea who you were and treated you horribly."

"You're welcome," Klaus replied, looking into her eyes. " It was the spell. I knew you didn't really mean it."

"Well, regardless," Amy continued, "I love you." Then before Klaus could do more than grin, she leaned over to kiss him. Then, he gently began running his hands over her body, and she grinned at the feeling of his warmth and strength against her skin. Then she whispered, "Come inside me, please."

"All right," he replied, and kissed her again before slowly and gently entering her, holding her close to his heart and knowing that he would never let her go.

* * *

"So..." Kol told Margot the next day. "Did you give more thought to my proposal that you be my French maid?"

"Well," Margot replied, "I suppose." She paused and zapped a maid's outfit on herself, only in this one, the black parts were made with leather. She gave him a wink. "Just so you know," she whispered in a breathy voice, sashaying toward him in a way that emphasized the low-cut design of the outfit. "I don't do windows."

Kol chuckled. "As long as you do me, it doesn't matter what you don't do." He paused, grinning. "Are you a dirty girl?" He asked.

"Of course," Margot whispered next to his ear. "The cleaning thing is just my job. Being dirty is my hobby."

Kol then pulled the front of her dress down, pushed her against the wall, and began to suck on her breasts while she gasped with pleasure. "Oh, Master," Margot cried as he entered her. "Harder! Harder!"

Just then, the door slammed shut and they heard a gasp. Separating from each other, they both groaned when they saw a horrified Amy staring at them.

"I-I interrupted," she got out. "I'm sorry."

"Never mind," Margot replied and magicked her normal clothes back on. "The mood's broken. But knock next time, would you?"

"Oh, yes," Amy nodded, her cheeks red. "Definitely."

"So," Kol asked as he zipped up his pants. "What caused you to come barging in here?"

"I just-something bad happened to me yesterday," Amy told them.

"Was it the thing with Jonathan that's all over the news?" Margot asked. "I can't believe he messed with your mind like that. He had no right!"

"Well, I don't want to waste a lot of my energy worrying about him," Amy said. "He's Astrid and James' problem now, not mine."

"So you're cutting off all contact with him?" Margot asked.

"Yes," Amy nodded. "Why wouldn't I?"

"Well, he was at your house long enough to bond with Savannah," Margot pointed out. "What if she misses him?"

"Don't be silly!" Amy snapped. "She's a baby. She won't miss him!"

"You don't _know_ that," Margot replied in a sing-song voice.

"All right, we've heard your opinion," Amy replied stiffly. Then, she looked at Kol. "What do you think?"

"Me?" Kol asked. "Well, I really don't know what you want me to say. Although I would think that you wouldn't want her around a man who took advantage of her helplessness."

"Exactly!" Amy replied. "Thank you! Maybe, when she's a little older, I _might_ consider letting him see her again, but that won't be for a _long_ time, no matter how upset it makes her."

"Are _you_ all right with what happened?" Margot asked her sister, putting a hand on Amy's shoulder. "I mean, it's sweet and motherly of you to worry about Savannah, but she's not the only one who matters."

"Oh, I'll be all right," Amy sighed. "It was a bit of a shock at first, what he did. But now that I've had time to process, I think I'll be all right."

"That's good to hear," Margot replied.

"Well," Amy cleared her throat and stood up. "I've told you what I came to tell you, now I'm gonna go, and you can continue what you were doing when I interrupted." She left the room, shut the door, and as Margot's giggling and screaming resumed, she left the house.

* * *

"So," Lenora asked James they had sent Henry and Susanna out of the house and were spending the day in bed in the ship. "Just what underhanded methods did you and Grandpa use to catch Jonathan Putnam?"

"There was nothing underhanded," he told her. "Everything was perfectly legitimate. We found the house, sneaked inside, caught Putnam red handed, and took him to Astrid. End of story."

"Oh, I'm sure there was more to it then that," Lenora said, running her hand down his body. "And I'm sure you handled it masterfully."

"Yes," James chuckled as he felt her stroke him under the blankets. "Yes, I'd like to think I did." Then, he groaned.

"Good?" Lenora asked, her blonde hair brushing his chest as she shifted positions and leaned over him. "Or no?"

"Good," James nodded, inhaling her scent. "Very good." Then, she let out a brief shriek as he pulled her forward and kissed her. She threw her arms up around his neck and kissed him back, feeling him slip inside her.

"Good job, Captain," she gasped. "X marks the spot!" She giggled as he began tickling her. "No," she laughed. "Stop! Stop!"

"Do you surrender?" James asked, his eyes twinkling.

"Not to everyone," Lenora replied, taking his face in her hands. "But to you? Always."

"You know what?" James whispered. "This makes up for the fact that Jonathan didn't have to have the same punishment as me."

"What?" Lenora asked. "They didn't send him to Luke? I thought they would have!"

"I know!" James replied. "But Alistair's handling him now. I just hope Putnam's not too much for him."

"Please," Lenora giggled. "Grandpa Alistair minded Grandpa Klaus for five-hundred years. I think after that, anyone else will be a piece of cake."

"I guess you're right," James nodded. "But I wish Alistair luck all the same."


	8. Saying Thank You

"Are you all right?" Selina asked Amy, charging through Klaus and Amy's front door. "I heard about what happened to you."

"How could you have?" Amy asked. "Not that I'm not touched by your concern, of course."

"Klaus complained about it to Elijah, then I got it out of Elijah, even though he didn't want to tell me at first," Selina replied as she sat down. "So, are you okay?"

"Yeah," Amy nodded. "But it's not good getting your memory messed with."

"I know," Selina replied. "One time, Elijah's father got mad at me and erased every memory I had of being with his family, which is a lot of my life. It was incredibly unsettling."

"I agree," Amy replied. "Especially in my case, since the man who did it to me was someone I trusted. Klaus started giving Savannah blood after that, even though her teeth haven't come in yet."

"And how is that going?" Selina asked. "Are you okay with it?"

Amy shrugged. "It's a little unsettling, but it's something I'll have to get used to." She paused. "But if it will make her stronger and more able to ward off future attacks, as I told Klaus, I'm all for it."

"If it makes you feel any better," Selina told her, "I was unsettled the first time Adrian had blood."

"You were?" Amy asked, looking at Selina in surprise. "I wouldn't have thought so."

"Hey, a baby turning into a demon-like creature is startling for anyone," Selina replied. "Even if it's only for a little bit."

Amy nodded. "I completely agree."

"So what will happene now?" Selina asked. "With the guy, I mean?"

"Jonathan?" Amy shrugged. "I don't know. Hopefully, he's being taken somewhere where he can get the help he needs." She sighed. "And it will make things better between me and Klaus. He _really_ didn't like Jonathan being here."

Just then, Klaus came strolling in, whistling with a spring in his step. "Selina!" He said in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"I just heard from your brother about what happened with Amy and I wanted to come and make sure she was okay," Selina replied.

"Well, how lovely," Klaus replied. "You told Elijah that you were coming and he was okay with it, right?"

"Well, now that you're more or less married, why _wouldn't_ he be okay with it?" Selina asked. "The only reason why he was nervous before is because you weren't attached to anyone and he feared we would relapse. No need to worry about that now."

"Well, good," Klaus replied. Then he looked at Amy. "I'm gonna go take Savannah out," he said. "So if you two want to go out and do something, go ahead."

"All right," Amy nodded. "Thanks."

Klaus left and Selina gave Amy a look. "So what is it you'd like to do?" She asked. "If anything?"

"Well, this is kind of embarrassing," Amy replied, color coming into her cheeks. "But this thing with Jonathan was really my fault and I kind of feel I should make it up to Klaus. So, can you help me?"

"Sure," Selina said. "What would you like me to help you with?"

"Well, I wanna make this up to him," Amy elaborated. "Tell me, when you were with him, did the two of you ever...do any sexual roleplaying? Are you familair with how to do that?"

"Sure," Selina nodded. "Klaus and I did Little Red Riding Hood and the wolf, and Elijah and I do characters he made up named Mr. Richmond and Miss Stinson. He's my boss, I'm his secretary. You get the picture."

"Yes," Amy nodded. "How would I go about doing something like that for Klaus and me?"

"Well, have you talked about doing sexual roleplaying?" Selina asked.

"No," Amy shook her head. "I kind of want the first time to be a surprise for him, you know, to make up for the fact that he had to deal with my con artist ex-fiance."

"All right," Selina nodded. "What do you say we go to the mall and look up some costumes for you?"

"Sure," Amy replied. "Let's go." Then she paused. "Or we could stay here. I have magic, remember? I can change my clothes at will."

"Are you sure you wouldn't rather go out?" Selina asked.

Amy sighed. "All right. I guess it wouldn't hurt me to get out of the house for a bit."

They headed to the mall and straight into a lingerie boutique. "How about this one?" Selina asked, holding up something that was silky, tiny, and wouldn't provide a lot of coverage.

"Why would you want me to wear that?" Amy asked, eyes wide. "I can't! I'm a mother!"

Selina rolled her eyes. "Why not?" She asked.

"Could you just get something that provides a little more coverage, please?"

The two of them looked through several bins and found only a pair of black silk panties that met Amy's standards.

"Why didn't you buy more?" Selina asked as they left. "There were so many things in there that would have looked good on you!"

"Thanks," Amy said. "But I'm one of those people who doesn't like to show a lot of skin."

"Even if it's to have sex with your husband?" Selina asked.

Amy shut her eyes. "Now I feel kind of stupid," she said.

"Don't worry about it," Selina told her. "Elijah is exactly the same way. The most undressed he gets before sex is a pair of jeans, no shirt, and no shoes. Not that that's not incredibly hot, but...wait. I have an idea."

* * *

Amy straightened the collar of the leather jacket she wore to cover her bare breasts and then surveyed herself in the mirror. Along with the leather jacket, she wore the panties, dark finger and toe polish, and a black rose pin in her red hair, which she'd curled. Just then, she heard Klaus call out, "Amy, love? Savannah and I are back!"

"I'm in our room!" Amy called. She waited until she heard Klaus open the door, then turned to face him, slowly applying her ruby red lipstick. "Hi there," she said. "Surprise."

Klaus' eyes widened and he felt his jaw drop. He covered Savannah's eyes with his hand and said, "Okay, pet, I'm going to put you in your room now because Mommy and Daddy will be busy soon!" He brought her to her room and then zipped back to Amy.

"This is a new look," he said in surprise. "I guess I don't have to ask what you and Selina bought at the mall."

"Actully, I only bought the panties," Amy replied. "I borrowed the jacket."

"You're not wearing anything underneath it, are you?" He asked her as she pulled the jacket off.

"No," Amy shook her head. "As you can see, I'm not." She took a couple steps forward, put her arms around his neck, and kissed him. "I wanted to say 'Thank you' for being so patient about Jonathan," she said.

"Well," Klaus sighed as Amy helped him pull off his shirt. "I think in a little while, I'll feel sufficiently thanked. When he was naked, he eased her onto the mattress, slipped off her panties, and made it so she would never want to say the name 'Jonathan Putnam' ever again, and only scream his own as he took her in their bed.

* * *

"Well, hello, Mr. Putnam," Alistair greeted his new charge as Jonathan shuffled into his study for an appointment. "And how are you today?"

"I'm not well," Jonathan sighed. "And I _still_ don't understand why I have to be here!"

"Well, would you rather be imprisoned with the other people who used magic to mess with people's love lives?" Alistair asked him. "Because if you are, I would be more than happy to call Astrid at work and tell her about your change of heart." He reached for the phone and then Jonathan's eyes widened and he cried out, "No! Don't call!"

"All right," Alistair nodded. "Tell me why you're here."

Jonathan huffed. "I'm here because it's apparently against the law to manipulate someone's mind, even if doing it is for their own good," he said.

"There's a start," Alistair replied, writing on a pad.

"What are you writing?" Jonathan asked, looking nervous.

"Nothing, Mr. Putnam," Alistair said. "Just notes. You don't need to be concerned. Continue, please. Whose mind did you mess with?"

"Amy's," Jonathan replied. "Amy Estella Burke. She used to be my fiancee. We had plans. Then she broke it off and married that-that-beast!"

"You mean Klaus Mikaelson," Alistair clarified.

"You know of him?" Jonathan asked. "He's horrifying, isn't he?"

"It's not my place to answer that," Alistair replied, even though he wanted badly to come to Klaus' defense. "Was his being 'horrifying' what made you do this to Amy?"

"Yes," Jonathan replied. "I-I thought she'd be better off without him. People say I had underlying motives when I did what I did, but really, I _swear_, it was just to keep Amy and Savannah safe, nothing more, nothing less."

"If it was only to keep Amy and Savannah safe, why did you dose them with potion to make them love you before you left?" Alistair asked. "Cause it would seem to me that if you look at that component alone, you had ulterior motives."

"Well, how else could I have kept them away from him?" Jonathan asked. "If they'd been allowed to keep their own minds, they just would've wanted to go back to him!"

"And that right there should tell you something," Alistair replied. "Shouldn't it? Tell me what it should have told you."

"That he messed with their minds!" Jonathan cried out, as Alistair sighed.

"Could it be," he asked after rubbing his temples, "That Amy and Savannah would have gone back to Klaus because they want to be with him and don't feel threatened by his presence the way you think they do?"

"Oh, don't even _say _that!" Jonathan cried out, feeling horrified. "There's no way a good witch like Amy would be attracted to someone like Klaus without some sort of intervention from him. She's a good witch woman, who's always been told to marry a good warlock like myself." He grinned smugly.

"That may be true," Alistair replied. "But it _is_ possible for witches and warlocks to fall in love with people from other species, despite the fact that it's frowned upon. My own daughter, for instance, is married to Klaus' son Adrian. They've had two daughters and are working on getting Helene pregnant with a third."

"And you still speak to her?" Jonathan asked in amazement. "Your daughter, I mean? Even though she chose to marry outside our kind?"

"Yes," Alistair nodded. "I admit we were a bit worried for her at first when the relationship got serious, but we decided to support her in the end cause the relationship with Adrian made her happy. Granted, they _did_ have a bad period that led to pain, misery and death for several people including themselves, but they worked it out and now they're happy."

Jonathan frowned. "I don't know if Astrid was wise to send me to you," he said. "I'm not so certain I'm going to get sound advice for my problem."

"Oh, really?" Alistair asked. "Why not?"

"Because you don't seem to care about my feelings at all!" Jonathan replied. "All you're doing is telling me that I'm wrong and speaking favorably about your friends and family."

"So are you saying that what you did wasn't wrong?" Alistair asked.

"Exactly!" Jonathan replied. "And I want to see someone who'll treat me more fairly."

Alistair sighed. "You said in the beginning that you had no idea why you were here with me. Well, Mr. Putnam, I hope you heard what you just said because that answers that question. I am here to try and get you to understand that what you did to Amy and Savannah was wrong, regardless of whether a bunch of stodgy traditionalists would praise you for your efforts. If you love someone like you claim to love Amy, you don't take away their free will and manipulate their feelings. You let them do what makes them happy, even if it makes you upset. If being a parent has taught me how to do one thing, it's that. It's a lesson you must learn, Mr. Putnam, and we will talk every day until you do."


	9. A Disappearing Game

"Daddy!" Helene cried in surprise when she saw Alistair on her and Adrian's doorstep and went to hug him. "I'm so glad to see you! What have you been doing with yourself?" She helped him to the sofa and then went to get him some tea.

"Thank you, dear," he said and sipped it. "I could use this after the week I've had."

"What happened?" Helene asked. "Something bad, I take it."

"Well, your mother has me counseling Jonathan Putnam after his latest misstep with Amy and it-I wouldn't hesitate to call it a trial."

"Even worse than dealing with my father?" Adrian asked. "Or me?"

"Yes," Alistair nodded. "Jonathan refuses to believe that what he did to Amy and Savannah was wrong!"

"Are you kidding me?" Helene cried, standing up quickly. "He used magic to mess with her mind so she'd be with him and not Klaus. Why are you talking to him? I would've thought they'd send him straight to Luke's."

"They should have," Alistair replied. "But for some reason that I have yet to understand, your mother is taking the soft approach with him."

"The soft approach?" Adrian scoffed. "That's not fair! Helene turns me into a bunny and gets her powers taken away. Jonathan messes with Amy's mind and just gets a talking to? They should at least be punished the same amount."

Alistair chuckled. "You sound like James. No one was more incensed by Astrid's decision than him."

"Yeah," Adrian nodded. "We know. We heard."

"How're the baby plans coming?" Alistair asked to change the subject.

"We've planned it all out," Helene replied. "But we can't do anything until Mom has enough free time to turn me back to my old self. She already has permission from Hazel. I really hope it won't take forever."

* * *

Luckily for her, Astrid called a few days later. "I have time to get you back to normal if you want," she said.

"Really?" Helene asked. "Are you sure? I know you've got a lot on your plate with the Jonathan Putnam debacle."

"I do," Astrid agreed. "But I need a break from it, and who knows when I'll have more free time in the future?"

"All right," Helene nodded. "If you put it that way, I'll be in your office in a little bit."

"Who was that?" Adrian asked, wandering in as she hung up the phone.

"My mother," Helene replied, putting her arms around him. "She told me she found time to fix me up today."

"Did she?" Adrian asked. "Well, good for you. I bet that'll make you happy."

"Oh, it will," Helene sighed. "It'll do me a lot of good. But before I go, I want you to know something." She led him to the sofa and sat him down.

"What is it?" Adrian asked.

"Well, this whole experience of, you know, not having my powers and being a vampire...it made me miserable at times, but it also helped me see things from your point of view, you know?" Helene replied. "I took my powers for granted before and used them wrong when I shouldn't have, and I'm sorry."

"Well," Adrian replied, a little surprised by her show of humility. "Thank you very much for that admission. I'm glad that it helped you learn something."

Helene nodded. "Well, now that I have that off my chest, I'm gonna go meet my mom. I'll be back soon, though."

"All right," Adrian told her. "See you later."

She popped off to meet Astrid and once she was gone, the doorbell rang. Adrian went to answer it and found himself face to face with Felicity. "Hey, Dad," she greeted him. "What's up?"

"Nothing much," Adrian replied. "Your mom went off to become a full-fledged witch again."

"Yeah," Felicity nodded. "I heard she got her powers back."

"Do you wish they'd give yours back too?" Adrian asked her.

"Not really," Felicity shook her head. "When they took them away, I was glad, and, as I said at my trial after I killed Amy's parents, I don't relish being part of a species of people who feel it's right to punish each other just for following their hearts. Besides, if you think about it, a powerless me sort of makes our family even."

"What do you mean?" Adrian asked her.

"Well, you got Lenora being a witch like Mom, and you got me being a powerless like you, so we're even," Felicity explained. "No one is overpowering anyone else."

"Oh, all right," Adrian nodded. "I understand." He paused. "So what brings you here?"

Felicity shrugged. "I just thought I'd visit. It's only Stefan and me at the boarding house now since Sam moved in with Damon and even though we care about each other and are a 'couple', sometimes we just need to be apart for a bit. He went to Damon's and I came here."

"Oh, yes, I heard about Sam from Lucy," Adrian chuckled. "She was _not_ happy about what happened. I tell you, it's so rare that I hear my dear sister lose her temper, but when she does...it's just impressive. She's definitely one of us, no matter how many airs she picked up from Uncle Elijah." He grinned.

"Are you nervous about what will happen when Mom comes back?" Felicity asked. "Do you think it will bring you back to square one all over again?"

"No, I don't," Adrian replied. "I'm pretty sure, anyway."

"And once Mom is back to normal, you can think about having kids again," Felicity added. "You can't forget about that."

"Oh, believe me, we haven't," Adrian assured her. "And we won't forget you either."

"Well, I won't let you," Felicity replied. "I mean, I probably visit you more than Lenora does now, right?"

Adrian thought a moment. "You know," he said. "I think you're right." They sat in silence for a few seconds before Felicity said, "Would you and Mom mind if I picked out the name for the new baby? That is, if you haven't thought up a name already?"

"Sure!" Adrian replied, surprised again. "What names do you like?"

Felicity thought a moment. "If it's a girl, I like Caroline, and if it's a boy, I like Liam."

Adrian grinned and put his arm around her, kissing her hair. "I like those names too," he said. "Thanks for sharing them with me."

"You're welcome," Felicity replied.

When Helene returned, she found Adrian and Felicity playing poker.

"Looks like Felicity's winning," she observed, peering at Adrian. "I thought you'd be throwing a fit right now. That's what you used to do when you and I played poker."

"Well, that's only because you used your powers to cheat and win every hand," Adrian replied. "And it's no fun standing naked in our bedroom when _you_ haven't removed a single piece of clothing at all."

"Do you mind?" Felicity asked, scrunching up her face in disgust. "It's your turn, Adrian. You gonna raise the bet?"

"Nah, I'll call," Adrian replied, putting his cards down. "Royal flush."

"Two pair," Felicity sighed. "Looks like you win this one." She pushed the pile of money toward him. "There you go. It's all yours."

"You can't take money from your daughter!" Helene replied, horrified.

"Yes, he can," Felicity replied. "He won it fair and square, plus, most of it was his to start out with anyway. So, are you back to normal now?"

"Yep," Helene nodded. "I am." She paused, sitting down at the table. "Can you deal me in? I promise I won't cheat."

"What do you think?"Adrian asked Felicity.

"I think we should let her in," Felicity replied.

"And if it makes you feel any better," Helene told him, "We don't even have to play for money." She zapped in a king sized bag of Tootsie rolls. "We can play for these instead." She grinned. "I'm still gonna kick your butt though."

"Oh, yeah?" Adrian grinned. "We'll just see about that."

"Yeah," Felicity replied. "I might just kick _both_ your butts." She re-shuffled the deck, dealt out the cards. "Who wants to go first?"

* * *

"Are you _sure_ you're all right with your brother and Selina babysitting Savannah?" Amy asked Klaus. "I know it was like with Jonathan where I decided something and didn't really ask you first."

"No, it's fine," Klaus replied. "Kind of a surprising choice, though."

"Why?" Amy asked. "I think Elijah will be a marvelous influence on her."

Klaus frowned. "And just what's that supposed to mean? Are you saying I'm a_ bad _influence?"

"No!" Amy replied quickly. "It's just that it's best for people to grow up with different perspectives in their lives in order to be well-rounded. That's all I meant. I swear."

"I suppose I can believe you," Klaus replied. "If you want her to have different perspectives, though, maybe we should travel. Go to Europe, you know. See the world."

"With a six month old?" Amy asked. "Do you really think that's a good idea?"

"Well, it won't be now, of course," Klaus replied. "But eventually."

"All right," Amy nodded, giving his hand a squeeze. "Sounds good."

* * *

But it didn't take long for Klaus to realize that having Elijah be Savannah's babysitter wasn't as perfect of an arrangement as Amy made it out to be. Time after time, he'd go to pick her up, and Elijah would be reluctant to give her back. Finally, Klaus asked Selina what was going on.

She sighed. "He took Laura's wedding and pregnancy hard. And now all he can think about is having another baby to fill up her empty room."

"So have one!" Klaus replied. "He's not gonna steal _my _baby!"

"It's not that simple," Selina replied. "Elijah isn't in his right mind right now, and honestly, I don't think it would be good to bring a baby into the equation before he gets better."

Klaus' jaw dropped a little. "So I have to just be content with wrestling Savannah out of his grip every time I come to pick her up? Selina, that is ridiculous!"

"You could have Amy come and pick her up instead," Selina suggested. "That might be better."

Klaus just frowned at her, sighed, then got up and headed back to Amy.

* * *

"So what did she say?" Amy asked when he got back. "What did she say about Elijah?"

"She said that Laura being married and having a baby hit him hard and he's having trouble dealing with it. And that all he can think about is putting another baby in her empty room," Klaus replied. "Can you believe that?"

"Oh, that poor man!" Amy exclaimed.

"Don't you go feeling too sorry for him now," Klaus replied. "You do and we'll have another Jonathan situation on our hands."

"Of course I wouldn't let it go _that _far again," Amy assured him, pushing her red hair out of her eyes. "I've learned my lesson."

"So now will you tell me he won't be babysitting her anymore?" Klaus asked.

"Oh, I don't know!" Amy sighed. "We'll see." She paused. "I suppose that if he wasn't, we could always leave her with Kol and/or Margot. But really, is changing babysitters so much good for her? First, she bonds with Jonathan. Then he goes away. Same with Elijah. Maybe we're doing something wrong."

"We're not," Klaus replied. "I think she'll be okay."

Amy sighed. "All right," she said. "But if taking her away from Elijah just makes him worse, you should have the grace to feel ashamed of yourself."

"I'm sorry, love," Klaus replied. "That'll never happen."

* * *

"So you want us to babysit?" Margot asked Amy. "I thought you'd have to find someone else after Jonathan got hauled away, but I didn't think you'd pick Kol and me!"

"Well, sorry if it's an inconvenience, but we're running out of options," Amy told her.

Margot's face twisted. "Thanks for the compliment," she said as she took Savannah. "I'm touched."

"I'm not saying that I think you're bad babysitters," Amy sighed. "I just figured you'd much rather spend your time having fun than watching a baby. That's all I meant."

Margot led her inside to Kol. "So," Kol replied with a smirk. "What made you decide to stop trusting Elijah with Savannah?"

"Selina says he's having trouble," Amy replied. "And that having Savannah around will only make things worse. It was so sad when I took her away. He looked so crushed."

"Don't let it worry you too much," Kol replied. "Or even at all. Cause it's just how my brother is. He gets unreasonably attached to people and then has the worst difficulty letting them go. It's not natural."

Amy sighed. "Well, all right," she replied. "If you say so. And thank you so much for doing this. It means a lot."

"I have a question for you," Margot asked her sister. "Just what do you and Klaus do after you drop Savannah off to be minded? Should I ask? Will it lead to her having another sibling soon? Hmmm?"

"We don't do_ just_ that!" Amy replied. "I have other projects I do as well. Plus it's good for Savannah to get to know other people in her family besides Klaus and me."

Kol and Margot looked at one another and smirked. "Uh-huh," Margot nodded. "Sure, whatever you say, sis."

"Laugh at me all you want," Amy told her. "But I'm gonna give you one more warning before I go: Savannah could very well shoot fire out of her eyes. She did it in front of Klaus' niece Margaret and scared the poor girl to death!"

"All right," Margot replied. "We'll keep that in mind. You run along now and work on all those..._projects_ that so desperately need your attention."

"All right," Amy nodded. "I will. Goodbye." She left and Margot shut the door, turning to Kol. "What should we do now?"

"Do you think your sister was serious about Savannah shooting fire from her eyes?" Kol asked. "Try and get her to do it. We could have marshmallows."

"No," Margot said flatly. "If you want to have marshmallows, I can make fire myself."

"Oh, come on!" Kol replied. "It would be so much more interesting to watch Savannah do it. No offense to you, or anything."

"None taken," Margot replied. "But it was probably just a fluke. She's too young to be able to do any sort of magic at will. At this point, it just happens."

"Does it really?" Kol asked.

"Yep," Margot nodded. "It'll level out when she's around a year old, though." She then realized she was hungry and went to look in the refrigerator for something to eat. When she saw that her refrigerator was nearly empty, she went back to Kol and said, "I have to run to the grocery store. Would you be okay with watching Savannah while I'm gone?"

"Couldn't you just zap food in?" Kol asked.

"I could," Margot nodded. "But it's a nice day and I want to go out and get air. So, will you do it?"

"Fine," Kol replied. "I'll watch the kid while you're gone."

"All right," Margot replied. "Don't look away from her for a minute, cause I don't want to have to explain losing her to my sister."

"Would you just go?" Kol snapped.

Margot went and Kol was left alone with Savannah. Unsure what to do with a six-month-old, he just took her onto his lap and turned on the TV. But after a little while, he heard a small noise and looked down in horror as the baby in his lap slowly faded away. "Oh,_ fuck_," he whispered, turning off the TV and running around the house looking for Savannah and yelling her name in a desperate attempt to find her before Margot got back.

However, it didn't work out and when Margot returned with the groceries, the first thing she saw was Kol running around yelling Savannah's name.

"Why are you doing that?" She asked. "Are the two of you playing hide and go seek? That's adorable!"

"Yes," Kol chuckled nervously. "You could say that's what we're doing."

"Well, where did you hide her?" Margot asked. "I wanna play too."

"No, you can't!" Kol replied.

"Why?" Margot asked.

"Cause we're not really playing hide and go seek," Kol sighed. "We were watching TV, she just sort of...faded away, and now I don't have a clue where she is."

"Really?" Margot asked. "Did that seriously happen?"

"Yeah," Kol nodded, waiting for the lecture. "It did. I lost her."

But to his surprise, Margot put her arms around him instead. "You poor guy!" She said. "I can see how you'd be frantic after that."

"So...you aren't mad at me?" Kol asked in surprise.

"Well, did you intentionally lose her?" Margot asked.

"No," Kol shook his head. "It just happened. I told you that."

"Well, then why would I be mad at you?" Margot replied.

"You shouldn't be," Kol told her. Just then, they heard a creepy, high pitched giggle in the air around them. "She's in here!" Margot cried. "Good thing she didn't leave the room!" They headed to the part of the room that the giggle had come from and Margot raised her hand, muttering a spell under her breath. Suddenly, Savannah appeared, floating aimlessly just below the ceiling for a few seconds before gravity took over and she began plummeting toward the carpet. "Run!" Margot yelled at Kol. "You have to catch her!"

Kol nodded and zipped over underneath the baby, catching her just in time. As her two guardians panted warily, Sannah smiled at both of them. "You know," Kol told Margot, "when you said that anything could happen with her at this point, you weren't kidding!"

"Of course not," Margot replied. "I never kid about anything important."

"Do me a favor," Kol replied. "Don't you leave until Amy comes back again. I'm begging you."

"Don't worry," Margot comforted him as they all headed toward the sofa. "I wasn't planning on it."


	10. A New Goal

Jonathan sighed as he stomped off to another meeting with Alistair. "Can we skip our talk today?" He asked. "I'm sure I don't need it."

"No," Alistair said flatly. "You_ do _need it. That's the point."

"You don't trust me," Jonathan replied sourly. "What's wrong with a little trust between friends?"

"You aren't my friend," Alistair told him. "You've done bad things and now we're trying to cure you of your bad habits."

"What if I apologize to Amy?" Jonathan asked. "Would that solve things?"

"No," Alistair replied. "Being around her will only undo what work we've already done. If you want me to help you find someone else to date, I'd be more than happy to do that, but there's no way I'm letting you near Amy."

"And another thing I've noticed," Jonathan replied. "I can't seem to be able to leave this house. Why is that?"

"Because we don't want you to give in to temptation, that's why," Alistair told him. "Now, talk to me: How are you feeling?"

"Like I want to skip our session," Jonathan replied, eyes narrowed.

Just then, there was a knock on the door. "Alistair?" Elijah asked. "Can we talk?" Then, he noticed Jonathan. "Oh, I'm interrupting something. I'm sorry, I'll go."

"No, please sit!" Jonathan replied, standing up. "I insist. What he and I are doing here can wait." Then, grinning to himself as Elijah came into the room, he left with the goal of raiding Alistair's liquor cabinet.

"So," Alistair told Elijah. "What's the problem?"

"I can wait if his needs are more urgent than mine," Elijah said, gesturing out the open dor Jonathan had exited from. "It was Selina's idea that I come here anyway."

"Never mind," Alistair shook his head. "He can't leave the house. He'll be back eventually. So what's the problem?"

"It's Selina and me," Elijah told him. "We're having difficulties."

"What is it?" Alistair asked.

"Well, are you aware that Laura was married recently and is expecting a child?" Elijah asked him.

"No," Alistair shook his head and leaned forward. "But now I do. Am I correct in guessing that you aren't coping well with that? Is that why you're here?"

"Well, according to Selina I'm not coping well," Elijah replied. "But I think I'm doing fine."

"What have you done that would make her feel that way?" Alistair asked.

"Nothing," Elijah shrugged. "I simply suggested to Selina that we have another child to fill up Laura's empty room, and when she told me I had to wait, I decided to borrow Niklaus and Amy's daughter instead. She's really a sweet little girl."

"And when you say you 'decided to borrow' Savannah, what exactly does that entail?" Alistair asked.

"Nothing!" Elijah replied. "I just offered to babysit her is all."

"There has to be more to it than that," Alistair told him. "Selina, when she's in her right mind, is a very reasonable person. I'm sure that it would take more than a simple babysitting job to concern her."

Elijah sighed. "Well, I might have devoted every second of my time to Savannah's care, leading me to ignore Margaret and Annaliese."

"There you go," Alistair nodded. "You're neglecting your own children in favor of a baby who, although she's related to you, is not your child."

"Well, as I explained to Margaret," Elijah replied, "all my children are old enough to take care of themselves, whereas poor little Savannah is not."

"I agree, but did it occur to you to stop at some point and turn Savannah's care over to Selina so you could pay attention to your other children, even for just a little while?" Alistair asked.

"Oh, stop talking, Alistair!" Elijah replied irritably. "You sound just like everyone else who's scolded me recently."

In spite of himself, Alistair chuckled at that remark. "And what do you plan to do about that?" He asked. "What does that say to you?"

"I don't know," Elijah shrugged. "That people need to stop telling me how to run my life?"

Alistair sighed. "That's not the right answer, you know it. Perhaps you should tell Klaus and Amy to find another babysitter for Savannah, to remove the temptation."

"Oh, don't worry," Elijah replied sourly. "That's already been done."

"Has it?" Alistair asked. "Well, good! Now you can return to focusing on your family!"

"What good will that do me?" Elijah asked. "There are no babies in my family."

"Maybe not at the moment," Alistair said. "But perhaps if you make peace with your wife and find other things to work on, you might be surprised one day."

"Oh, I'm not sure," Elijah replied, standing up. "Selina seemed pretty insistent about keeping our family the way it is."

"Perhaps," Alistair told him. "And perhaps not. But you won't know until you start making an effort to improve things. You should leave now and do that."

"All right," Elijah nodded. "I will." He headed out the office door, and Alistair called out to him, "Before you go, could you find that man who was in here when you arrived and send him back?"

"Of course!" Elijah replied. Alistair waited, and a little while later, a sour-faced Jonathan Putnam came back into the office. "_Very_ sneaky," he told Alistair. "You make me think I'm home free, and then you pull me back in!"

"I never said you were home free at all," Alistair told him. "That was just in your imagination. Now, where were we?"

Jonathan sighed. "You were prattling on about how I needed to avoid temptation." He paused. "That fellow who interrupted things: Who is he? What did he want?"

"That has nothing to do with you, so we won't be talking about it," Alistair replied sharply. "Now, focus!"

"Fine," Jonathan replied. "Prattle on." He got through the session, but once it was over, headed straight to the phone. He couldn't leave the house, but he still had one way to occupy himself that didn't involve Amy: Calling Margot. He dialed her number, heard the dial tone, and waited for her to answer.

* * *

"You know," Margot told Amy, "I have to give Kol a lot of props. I mean, you'd think he'd be shallow and not care a hell of a lot about babies, but Savannah disappeared on him while I was at the grocery store, and the guy was terrified! I got home and found him running around calling her name and stuff, and when I made her visible and she started falling to the floor, he *ran* to catch her. It was really touching, actually."

"Well, it's nice to know Savannah was in good hands," Amy replied. "Not that I doubted it, of course."

"Were you ever worried about how Klaus would be as a parent?" Margot asked.

"No," Amy shook her head. "He's raised other children before. I would say he's got more child-rearing experience than I do!"

Just then, the doorbell rang and Amy went to answer it. "Helene!" She cried happily. "How are you?"

"Not a vampire anymore," Helene grinned. "Mom fixed me up yesterday."

"Wonderful!" Amy replied. "I know you were looking forward to that."

"Hey, Helene!" Margot called. "How are you?"

"Good!" Helene told her. "And you?"

"Not bad," Margot replied. "So, what's new?"

"Well, Adrian and I can start trying to have our baby now," Helene replied. "That's new. And thank goodness Felicity seems to be on board with the plan, cause that was important to us." Then, she looked at Amy apologetically. "Sorry," she said. "I probably shouldn't be praising Felicity in front of you, should I?"

"It's all right," Amy replied. "Not that I condone torture, but I won't deny that since the temptation to please my parents is out of the way, my life is so much easier."

"I told you that a long time ago," Margot replied. "But you didn't believe me."

Just then, she heard her phone ring. She took it out of her pocket and went into a corner. "What do you want?" She snapped at Jonathan. "You aren't even supposed to be talking to me anymore."

"No, that's your sister," Jonathan replied dryly. "No one said anything about me talking to _you._ Unless, of course, you _also_ have an overly muscular, extremely temperamental gentleman friend who will get upset, believing I'm attempting to steal your affections?"

Margot scoffed. "Well, I wouldn't exactly call him my _gentleman friend_," She replied. "At least I don't think so. But he's closer to me than you are at the moment!"

"How delightful," Jonathan replied. Margot could hear the smirk in his voice. "We shall have to meet sometime."

"Why?" Margot asked. "No, you don't! Why would you think that?"

"Because since you have no males around to oversee your dating process, I guess I shall have to do it," Jonathan replied.

"Why me?" Margot groaned. "You didn't pull that sort of bullshit with Amy!"

"Language, Margot!" Jonathan chided. "And as you know, thanks to _that man_, your sister got in a delicate condition and was obliged to marry him. She had no choice and I could do nothing. _You_ on the other hand, still have time to make the right choices."

"Oh?" Margot asked coldly. "And pray tell, just what _are_ the right choices in your mind? Don't tell me you want to take _me_ down the aisle."

"Of course not!" Jonathan replied. "My heart will always belong to your sister, but that doesn't mean I cannot be concerned for you."

"Yes, it does!" Margot replied. "I'm a grown woman and you are not my father!"

"Even so-" Jonathan began before Margot cut him off. "La la la!" She yelled loudly into her phone. "I can't _hear_ you!" Then she turned it off just in time to see Helene staring at her. "Are you all right?" She asked. "Who was on the phone?"

"I'm fine, and it was no one," Margot replied. "No one I wanted to talk to. Mosey on to the bathroom now. I'll be all right."

"Okay," Helene replied, still eying her nervously. "If you say so." She headed off to the bathroom and Margot waited a few seconds before running over to Amy. "I have some good news," she said. "You can tell Klaus he doesn't have to worry about Jonathan bugging you and Savannah. At least not for awhile."

"Is that so?" Amy asked. "What brought that change about?"

Margot sighed. "He's decided to put his effort into me instead, since I have no permanent 'gentleman friend' as he calls them, and no one's gotten me pregnant."

"Oh, sweetie," Amy replied, hugging her. "I'm sorry. But he's wrong, isn't he? You have Kol."

"But Kol's not my gentleman friend!" Margot replied. "He just lives with me, sleeps with me, and eats my food!"

"Sounds like he's your gentleman friend to me," Amy replied.

"Right," Margot nodded. "Now that I've said it out loud, I guess that's true."

"So you might want to let Kol know what you need from him in case Jonathan comes calling," Amy told her sister. "And I'll tell Klaus what you said. It'll make his day."

* * *

"I have to what?" Kol asked.

"You have to act like my boyfriend," Margot told him. "You know that guy Jonathan who's been a big pain in your brother's ass?"

"Yeah," Kol replied, eyes narrowed. "What about him?"

"Well, apparently, for the moment, he's decided to possibly be a big pain in yours," Margot replied. "He called while I was at Amy's the other day and told me that since I was single and not pregnant, he was gonna take it upon himself to find me an 'appropriate' boyfriend."

"Well, what's wrong with _me_?" Kol asked. "Hypothetically, I mean."

"You're not a warlock," Margot told him. "And Jonathan is one of the old-fashioned types."

Kol began laughing. "You're joking, right?" He asked when he could get his breath.

"No," Margot shook her head. "I'm not."

"So, how likely is it that we'll have to deal with this man soon?" Kol asked her.

"Well, he's currently at Alistair and Astrid's. There's a spell on the house preventing him from leaving, but I don't know how long that will last. I have no doubt that since he broke out of the Council jail, it's only a matter of time before he's able to leave Alistair and Astrid's, and when that happens, he'll come straight here to look for trouble." She paused. "I guess there's only one thing we can do to deal with this."

"And what's that?" Kol asked.

"I know you'll hate this," Margot replied, getting down on one knee. "But Kol, will you pretend to be my gentleman friend? It's the only thing that might keep Jonathan Putnam the hell away from me."

"Fine," Kol replied, pulling her up and giving her a kiss. "For your sake, Margot, I will be your gentleman friend and everything that entails."


	11. A House Fight

"Adrian?" Helene called. "I'm back from doing my errands! And I brought your mom with me!"

"What?" Adrian asked after zipping in. He went to hug Selina. "Hi, Mom. What brought you here?"

Selina shrugged. "I just thought that since the two of you are thinking about becoming parents again, you might wanna see some baby pictures." She plunked a large white album down. "I was feeling sentimental."

"What could Helene possibly get out of a bunch of baby pictures of me?" Adrian asked.

"Actually, this album is full of pictures of both of you," Selina replied. "You wouldn't believe how often Astrid and I brought you two together on play dates when you were little."

"I don't wanna see those!" Adrian cried. "There could be embarrassing pictures of us bathing together in there or something!"

"Not really," Selina giggled. "But there is one that I took after Helene sneezed and turned into something right in front of you. You were terrified, Adrian."

"Yes, well, moving on!" Adrian replied, pulling the album away from his mother. "I'll humor you and take a look at this, all right? Happy?"

"Yes," Selina nodded. "I guess so."

They looked at the albums for awhile, with Adrian getting color in his cheeks as Helene and his mother cooed over the more embarrassing photos, usually of him. Then, his mother finally checked her watch. "I have to run to the bakery," she said. "You two enjoy the albums and I'll talk to you later."

"All right," Adrian replied, getting up to follow Selina to her car. "Goodbye. Have a good day and we'll talk to you later."

"Yes," Selina told him before she got the car and drove away. "Of course you will."

* * *

"What was with you when your mom wanted to show us those baby pictures?" Helene asked when Adrian came back. "I thought they were adorable!"

"Well, they were okay," he replied. "But why did my mom have to put emphasis on the embarrassing ones?"

"Oh, don't be such a baby!" Helene told him. "They weren't that bad. You were adorable! Besides, why is us taking a bath together when we were toddlers more embarrassing than us doing it now? I know for a fact you've taken pictures of me in the bath and have them hidden somewhere."

"Well, that's different!" Adrian replied. "That's not embarrassing!"

Helene scoffed. "Of course you'd say that. Why am I not surprised?"

"Cause you shouldn't be!" Adrian chuckled. "So, when should we start working on making our next baby?"

"I don't see why 'soon as possible' isn't a good answer," Helene replied with a grin.

He took her in his arms. "I like the way you think." Then, he carried her off to bed.

"You know," He said en route, "I love the girls, but I hope we have a boy this time."

"I kind of do too," Helene replied. "It would be fitting for the new start we're making. He'd probably be adorable and blonde like you. But it _would_ also be nice to have a brunette kid."

"Well, who knows what we'll get?" Adrian replied. They reached the bedroom door, and since Adrian's arms were full, Helene had to turn the knob for him so he could take her inside. Then, they stripped down and jumped right in bed without a lot of foreplay. They had a job to do and didn't want to waste time, and looking at the baby pictures had given them a sudden burst of inspiration.

* * *

"What do you _mean _I can't go up to that Putnam idiot and punch him in the nose?" Kol fumed at Margot.

"Cause Alistair is watching him," Margot replied. "It's part of his punishment."

"Whose?" Kol asked. "Putnam's or Alistair's? What did Alistair do wrong?"

"Alistair didn't do _anything_," Margot replied. "It's Jonathan's punishment."

"So since we know where he is, let's go!" Kol ordered. "Do your little zappy thing and it won't take us any time at all to get there."

Margot sighed. "You're not gonna let this go, are you?" She asked.

"He said he was going to pick a man for you, as if I were somehow inadequate," Kol huffed. "Of _course_ I won't let it go!"

"All right," Margot rolled her eyes. "Come here. Let's get this over with." Before she was about to zap them away, however, the doorbell rang, and, sighing, Margot went to answer it.

"Hi!" Amy said. "Are you available?"

"Sorry," Margot told her sister. "Kol desperately needs to go pop Jonathan Putnam in the nose cause he's mad Jonathan said he wasn't fit to be with me. We were just about to go. Sorry you'll have to find someone else to watch Savannah."

"Oh, it's all right," Amy said. "I wasn't bringing her to be babysat. I just wanted to hang out for awhile. But I suppose I could check if Lenora is free, cause Susanna likes playing with Savannah."

"There you go," Margot nodded. "Problem solved. Bye, Amy."

"Bye," Amy replied and then she zapped herself and Savannah back home so she could call Lenora and see if she could come visit her while Margot zapped herself and Kol to Alistair's to get Kol's discontent with Jonathan Putnam out of his system.

* * *

"Okay, here we are," Margot replied, clutching Kol tightly when she and he landed at Alistair and Astrid's. "Let's find Jonathan and get this over with."

"Why are you holding on to me so tight?" Kol winced at her grip on him.

"I don't want you to go running off!" Margot replied. "We're here for one purpose and one purpose only. No dawdling!"

"What's wrong with you?" Kol asked, pulling his hand out of her grip. "You're usually so much fun, but now you're acting just like your sister!"

"Fine," Margot sighed. "Whatever. Do what you want. I don't care."

"All right!" Kol grinned widely and sped off. Just then, Margot heard someone calling her. She turned around and saw Alistair approaching.

"What are you doing here?" He asked.

"I just-nothing," she said. "Just popped in to say 'Hi'."

"It's a good excuse," Alistair replied. "But what's really going on?"

"It's Kol," Margot replied. "Jonathan called me while I was visiting with Amy the other day and said that if he couldn't be with Amy, he'd put his claws in me. Then, I told Kol, and now Kol wants to beat Jonathan up."

"Oh, dear," Alistair replied.

"I'm sorry," Margot replied as they heard a crash, a small explosion, and some yelling. They began making their way toward the source of the noise. "I know I shouldn't have just let him have his way," she continued. "But it's hard to say 'No' to him."

"It's not your fault," Alistair replied. "They _all_ have a marvelous ability to manipulate." When they found Jonathan and Kol, they were rolling around on the floor, punching each other. Occasionally, it would seem like Jonathan had the upper hand when he gave Kol brain pain, but since it was just him, it never lasted for very long before Kol was winning again.

Eventually, Alistair and Margot pulled the pair apart.

"Did you see that?" Jonathan said shrilly as he pointed at Kol. "He attacked me! And there was no provocation for it whatsoever!"

"I would say you were fighting him as much as he was fighting you," Alistair replied. "You can't deny that."

"Well, at this point, that's true," Jonathan conceded. "But if you'd been here at the beginning of the fight, you'd have seen that he attacked me first and anything I did after was self-defense."

"What was that bullshit you told Margot about me not being good enough for her?" Kol asked.

"Just that," Jonathan replied. "There's no way she'd be happy with a man like you."

"How the hell would you know that?" Margot asked him. "You're not even interested in me anyway, and as you're neither my mother nor my father, you have no say about any part of my love life. And even if you _did_, I would still make it difficult for you!"

"What's going on, Mr. Putnam?" Alistair asked. "Why do you keep making things worse for yourself? You're being given a lighter sentence than most people in your situation. Don't make Astrid sorry she did you the favor. Now come with me and we'll talk about this unfortunate need you have to destroy your future."

"You're making a mistake!" Jonathan shouted at Margot while Kol gave Jonathan the finger behind his retreating back. "You be with him, you'll be unhappy forever!"

When he was gone, Kol took Margot in his arms and chuckled. "Can you believe that man? What a fool."

"I won't say he's not pathetic," Margot replied. "But at the same time, it's all kind of sad. Now, do you have all this out of your system?"

"I suppose," Kol replied. "At least for the moment."

Margot sighed. "I suppose for you, that's a promise. Now come on and let's go home before you cause any more trouble."

"You know what a good way would be to make sure of that?" Kol asked her.

"What?" Margot asked, even though she already knew the answer.

"We should go to bed," Kol replied immediately. "Nothing quells thoughts of revenge like being in bed with a beautiful woman."

"Oh, you flatterer you," Margot replied, deadpan. Then, she zapped them home. Their feet had barely touched the floor befor Kol picked her up and zipped them both to bed.

"Seriously?" Margot asked, looking around.

"Of course," Kol replied, kissing her. "Did you think I was kidding?"

"No," Margot shook her head and let him undress her before he removed his pants and threw them in the clothes pile. "I'm not surprised at all."

"Really?" Kol asked, kissing her neck. "Cause it sounded like you were."

"It never lasts very long," Margot replied and nibbled on his ear, feeling his bulge against her thigh.

"You know what I wonder?" Kol asked.

"What?" Margot replied.

"I wonder how you taste," Kol replied. "Mind if I have a bite?"

"Of me?" Margot asked. "Can you do that?"

"Sure, I can feed off anyone," Kol replied. "It's just that humans are the most common prey since they're so easy to catch. So what do you think?"

"Sure," Margot replied. "Whatever." She shut her eyes, and felt his lips moist on her neck for a moment, followed by a sting that made her gasp. Then, she felt his hand slip between her thighs and rub her as he fed. She began to feel relaxed and warm. Then, he pulled back, licking her blood off his lips as he smirked.

Then, he cut his wrist, offering it to her. "I figure it's only fair to give when I take," he said. "So, you want a taste?"

Margot stared wide-eyed at the ruby-colored blood beading on his wrist. She then took a deep breath, leaned forward, and slurped a little. She planned on being disgusted, but instead, a curious taste, spicy and sharp like red wine, met her lips.

"Like it?" Kol asked, one eyebrow raised.

"Yes," Margot nodded in amazement. "I don't know why, but yes!"

* * *

"Thanks so much for letting me bring Savannah to visit," Amy told Lenora. "Especially since it was so short notice."

"Oh, it's not a problem," Lenora said. "Susanna actually insisted."

"See, Mommy?" Susanna pointed as Rusty began licking Savannah. "Rusty likes the baby too!"

"I see," Lenora told her. Then she turned back to Amy. "So, is Grandpa used to Savannah's powers yet?"

"He was used to them before I was," Amy replied. "Now it'll be me getting used to Savannah having blood. Klaus started her on it after Jonathan kidnapped us and I'm _still_ not used to it. How her eyes change...it scares me."

"My mom was scared of that too," Lenora said. "That's why I was never raised with emphasis on my vampire heritage. It was a shame, really."

Just then, Savannah sneezed, turning into a cat.

"Wow!" Susanna exclaimed. "I can do that too!" She turned into a cat as well and the two of them began chasing each other around the house.

"I was planning on turning her back, but I think we can wait a bit since they seem to be having so much fun," Amy told Lenora. "Don't you think?"

"I agree," Lenora replied.

Just then, James came in and let out a gigantic sneeze. "Cat," he said, his eyes narrowed. "There's a cat in here!"

"There are two," Lenora told him. "Susanna and Savannah are playing with each other."

James' eyes widened as the red cat and the yellow cat chased each other around the living room. "Turn them back!" He said. He was beginning to sound stuffed up. "I'm allergic!"

"How can you be allergic?" Lenora asked. "You're not allergic to Rusty!"

"There must be something about the magic that your aunt used when she made him that makes him different," James replied. "But animals have always made me sneeze!"

"Oh, you poor guy," Lenora said, taking him into her arms and turning both of the girls back to normal.

"Hey!" Susanna replied. "We were still playing!"

"Your daddy isn't feeling well, so I had to turn you back," Lenora told her. "Although, I could have just sent you to the ship and you would have been fine."

"Can Savannah and me go on the boat?" Susanna asked her father. "Please?"

"Not now," James told her. "I have to go lie down." Still sniffling, he went to bed, and Lenora went to tuck him in.

Then, Susanna got down next to Savannah. "What do you want to play now?" She asked. Savannah yawned and her eyes closed.

"I think she's tired out," Amy told Susanna. "I think we have to get home. But I'll bring her back to play with you another time."

"Do you promise?" Susanna asked. "Cause Henry doesn't ever want to play with me."

"I promise," Amy replied, picking up her sleeping daughter. "Will you tell your mommy goodbye for me?"

"Yes," Susanna nodded. "I will. Bye bye, Amy!"

"Bye!" Amy told her, and disappeared.


	12. To Catch A Thief

"Astrid, I really think we have to talk," Alistair said to her over lunch.

"Why?" Astrid asked. "What about?"

Alistair sighed. "I think you should let James send Jonathan Putnam where he belongs. I know you're a good-hearted person and you want to give him a second chance, but it's just not working out."

"Are you sure?" Astrid asked. "Maybe you're just not trying hard enough."

"He got into a fight with Kol, and apparently, he's going after Margot now in nearly the same way he did Amy," Alistair told her."

Astrid sighed. "I knew you were gonna think it was stupid the second I decided to put Jonathan Putnam on parole," she said. "But it surprises me how harsh you of all people are. You spent five-hundred and odd years with Klaus. People would call him evil, but you can look at him and go 'You're okay'. How would Jonathan be any different if given a chance?"

"We gave him a chance and he blew it when he messed with Amy and Savannah's minds," Alistair told her, trying to be gentle. "Now, do you want to call and give James the news about him, or should I?"

Astrid sighed. "I'll call to tell him," she said. "But really, I don't think it will be all that helpful for Jonathan to be locked up forever. Let's start with six months to a year and see how things go."

Alistair gave her a look. "I know you think it's gonna be easy to fix him, but may I remind you that Klaus and I were together for _years, centuries_ even, before he became the tolerable man he is now? Jonathan won't be fixed overnight. You have to be patient."

"All right," Astrid replied. "I'll remember that. But I'm still having him checked on after a year in any case." She strode out and Alistair stroked his temples. "And all these years, I thought she was the most put together one of us all," he said. "But apparently, that's me."

* * *

"Lenora! Lenora!" James came running into her room where she was folding the towels. "Stop doing that for a second and listen to me!"

Lenora stopped folding the towels to peer at her husband. "What's making you so happy?" She asked.

"I get to take Jonathan Putnam away!" He exclaimed, sounding positively gleeful. "Astrid just called and told me that it was okay. Granted, she didn't sound too happy about it, but still...an order is an order!" He paused. "I think I'll go see your grandfather too. He might want to share in the glory of this moment along with me."

Lenora nodded. "I'm sure he will. And I'm glad to see you so happy."

"Really?" James asked. "No scolding about how I'm glorying in the misfortune of my fellow man?"

"Not really," Lenora replied. "He hurt my friend. Why would I want you to be nice to him?"

"All right," James nodded. "Just checking. Do you want me to bring Susanna with me when I go and see your grandfather?"

"Yeah," Lenora replied. "Why not? I'm sure she'd love it."

* * *

When James and Susanna arrived at Klaus and Amy's, the atmosphere was tense. Amy was holding Savannah, who was crying with all her might, trying her best to calm her.

"She just started being ornery all of a sudden," Amy told James. "And we don't know what's wrong with her."

"I can help!" Susanna replied. "Put her on the floor!"

"All right," Amy replied skeptically and put the flailing, sobbing baby on the floor. Then Susanna leaned over her and began making faces. It was enough to stop Savannah crying for the moment as she watched the other girl with interest.

"Well, look at that," Klaus replied as he came in. "She stopped crying! It probably won't last forever, though."

"Unfortunately," Amy agreed. "Once Susanna is gone, it'll just start all over again."

"Not necessarily," Klaus replied. He went over and picked up his daughter, gently sticking his finger in her mouth. "Yes," he breathed. "Just as I suspected: She's teething."

"Oh, I feel so stupid!" Amy replied. "Why didn't I think of that!"

"Don't be too hard on yourself," Klaus replied. "You can't think of everything." He went to get some of her pacifiers and put them in the freezer. After they'd been in there for a bit, he took one out and let her suck on it. She seemed to relax, and he put her back on the floor. Then, to her parents' amazement, she got up on her hands and knees, wiggled her bottom a bit, and then started to crawl in spurts across the living room.

"We have a mobile baby now!" Amy cried and zapped gates in front of all the stairs, and plugs in all the unused sockets. "There," she breathed afterward. "I feel better now." Then, Klaus turned to James. "Sorry we got distracted," he said. "What can I do for you?"

"Nothing," James replied. "I just came to ask if you wanted to be there when I finally put Jonathan Putnam where he belongs. Astrid came to her senses at last and gave me permission."

"Good!" Klaus cheered. "Can I tell my brother too? He and Mr. Putnam have had an altercation or two, so I'm sure he'd relish Jonathan being put away just as much as the two of us."

"Sure," James shrugged. "Why not? Does he live here?"

"No, he and my sister have a separate house," Amy told him. "Klaus knows where it is. He can take you there. And Susanna can stay here with me."

"I wasn't thinking of taking her anywhere else," James replied, as he noticed Susanna helping Savannah with her crawling by showing her how to do it. "We should be back in a bit."

"All right," Amy replied. "See you two later!"

* * *

"All right, Kol!" Klaus replied as he and James stormed into Kol and Margot's room. "Get your ass out of bed. You'll want to come with us for this!"

"Do you two mind?" Kol asked, rolling off Amy. They were both undressed and neither bothered to cover themselves up. "I was busy!"

"Too busy to see Jonathan Putnam get what he deserves?" Klaus asked. "That's what we came here to tell you: Astrid finally gave James permission to send him away for good and we thought you'd want to see it."

"Yeah, all right," Kol replied, getting out of bed and putting pants and a shirt on. "I'll come with you. Sounds like fun."

"I'm not just staying here by myself!" Margot replied, dressing herself. "I'm coming too!"

James, Klaus, and Kol all looked at one another when she said this. "Fine," James replied, even though he'd planned for this to be a 'boys only' affair. "You can come too."

"Thank you," Margot replied. "Just FYI, I would have come anyway, even if you'd told me 'no'."

"And that's exactly why I didn't," James replied dryly. "I swear, you're cut from exactly the same fabric as Lenora."

"Well, it's good you realize that," Amy replied. "Cause I don't think you'd have enjoyed it much if I'd had to show you."

The four of them headed to Astrid and Alistair's, where Alistair stood just inside the doorway, next to Jonathan, who'd been cuffed to a bench.

"This really isn't fair!" He proclaimed. "I don't know what I've done wrong!"

"Oh, please!" James scoffed as he uncuffed him from the bench and then cuffed him again. "You've done plenty wrong. I don't think I should have to repeat it all to you."

Then, Jonathan noticed the other three. "I see you've brought an audience to delight in my downfall," he said. "But where's Amy? Did _she_ not desire to come along too? She must still care for me."

"No," Klaus replied. "She had to stay and watch Savannah."

"If it's not too much trouble," Jonathan asked James. "May I go say 'goodbye' to Amy? You know, since I'm going to be away for so long?"

"If she was actually going to miss you, I would grant the request," James replied. "But based on all that you've done to her and her daughter, I doubt that's the case. Just let her be."

Then, Jonathan shut his eyes, grunted, and opened them again. "I'm still here," he said. "I had thought to zap myself to your residence."

"Not in magic handcuffs you're not," Alistair replied. "I _knew_ you'd try and pull something like that, so I did the spell as a precaution."

It was then that Margot looked in Jonathan's eyes. "Let's just take him and let him say 'goodbye'," she said. "Since he can't do magic in the cuffs, you have complete control over him and can make sure he won't have time to mess around."

"Fine," Jonathan sighed. "But that's all you're gonna have time for is a goodbye," he told Jonathan firmly. Nothing else

Jonathan shook his head to get some of his long brown hair out of his eyes. "Yes," he replied. "I understand."

James reluctantly zapped Jonathan to see Amy after that. She started when he appeared in the house, but the sight of him made Savannah crawl eagerly in his direction.

"Well look at this!" He said in amazement as she approached him. "You remember me! Sorry I can't pick you up, darling, but I'm a little...handcuffed at the moment."

"So what is it that you want?" Amy replied. "Why are you here? It better be a damn good reason."

"He wanted to say 'goodbye'," James told her. "He's off to my former domain to see Luke after we get through here."

Amy gave her former lover a long look. "It didn't have to be this way," she said. "Everything that will happen to you, you brought on yourself."

"I understand," Jonathan replied. "And I'm _exceedingly_ sorry for all the wrongs I've done to you in an attempt to bring back what we once had."

"Yeah, well," Amy replied. "At this point, 'I'm sorry' isn't enough. I hope what you're about to go through teaches you how wrong you were doing what you did, and if you ever get out, it grants you a new perspective on things."

"I wish that too," he replied, reaching out for her hand and kissing it gently. Then, with some difficulty, he got down on his knees and plant a light kiss on Savannah's forehead as well. Once he was up again, he and James popped out of the house, leaving Amy alone with the girls.

"Who was that?" Susanna asked. "Was he a bad man?"

"He didn't start out that way," Amy told her. "It's a real shame what he's turned into."

"I wish Rusty was here to bite him!" Susanna replied. "That's what he does to bad people."

"Oh, I'm sure that's not necessary," Amy told her. "Where he's going, he's gonna be punished enough as it is."

* * *

"So how did it feel, putting Jonathan Putnam where he belonged?" Lenora asked James as he strolled into their bedroom that night, a cocky look on his face. "Did it make you feel good?"

"It made me feel _better_," James told her. "My enjoyment of the situation was somewhat tempered when Astrid told me the situation wasn't permanent and she was gonna check on him again in a year, but I guess you have to savor the small victories, right?"

"Yes, you do!" Lenora replied. James then hopped into bed beside her. "Besides," he said, kissing her soundly. "I have something in mind that will cheer me up the rest of the way, so it's not a total loss."

"Oh, really?" Lenora asked, one eyebrow raised. "Just what did you have in mind?"

"This," James replied and kissed her again, pushing her naked body against the mattress as he ran his hands over her body and pushed into her.

"Glad I could help cheer you up," Lenora replied, her face and forehead glistening with sweat as he rolled off her later.

James took her face in his hands and chuckled. "Believe me, dear one," he said. "No one knows how to cheer me up like you do, and no one else ever will. I promise."


	13. Surprises in the Attic

"I know you're gonna hate me for saying this," Amy told Klaus. "But I wonder what's happening to Jonathan now? Do you think he's being brutally tortured?"

"I hope so," Klaus replied. "In my head he is, anyway. And I would have preferred to do it myself, but as long as somebody is." He paused. "You're not going soft on me now, are you? You were doing so well when you saw him and told him that him being sent off to the place was a good idea and you hoped that he learned something...where did that go?"

"Oh, it's not gone," Amy assured him. "Don't worry about that. I'm just curious is all." She paused. "You know, if this is bothering you so much, maybe it wouldn't hurt you to get out of the house for awhile. How about you go to Enid's?"

"No," Klaus shook his head. "I can't. Enid's got some boyfriend coming or something and the whole place has turned into a singles' bar. Now she's 'all about love'. And I don't need any help with that, because I have it right here."

"Oh, you sure do," Amy replied, leaning against him. "From me and Savannah both." She then slapped her hands against her knees and stood up. "Now, I have a project for you to help me with."

"What sort of project?" Klaus asked suspiciously. "What are you trying to make me do, Amy?"

"I just think it would be good for us to sort out the attic," Amy replied. "It'll give us more space."

"No," Klaus replied. "We're not sorting out anything. I have a thousand years of treasured mementos up there!"

"I doubt you could even tell me _half_ of the things that are up there," Amy replied. "We'll sort it all out and you can get rid of the stuff you don't use. Come on."

"And just who is supposed to keep an eye on Savannah while you and I are sorting the attic?" Klaus asked. "We can't just leave her down here by herself."

"Fine," Amy replied. "I'll go call Margot. But once she comes, we're going to the attic."

* * *

"Thanks for coming," Amy told Margot, who arrived with Kol on her heels. "But Kol, you didn't have to come with her!"

"Yes, I did!" Kol insisted. "Some of the stuff you're thinking of throwing away from the attic could be mine!"

"So you're volunteering to help us?" Amy asked with a wide grin. "Great!"

"You're going to be sorry about this, brother," Klaus told Kol as they followed behind Amy and Margot went to play with Savannah.

Amy opened the attic door and a huge mountain of junk met their eyes. "See?" She told Klaus as she pushed boxes and stuff aside to make a pathway. "This is _exactly_ why this place needs to be cleaned up. You can't even walk through it!"

"Well, why does that matter?" Kol asked. "Aren't attics places to store stuff you never use?"

"You see?" Amy told Klaus. "Your brother just proved my point."

"Actually," Kol backtracked. "I _would_ use _my_ stuff if it wasn't over here in your attic."

"Nice try," Amy smirked. "Okay. Which pile of stuff do you want to start with? Just pick one. The sooner we get this started, the sooner it will be over with."

"You don't expect us to sort out this whole attic in one day, do you?" Klaus asked. "Because frankly, there are other things I'd much rather be doing!"

"I won't make you sort all day," Amy promised. "We'll work for an hour or two, stop, and then start again tomorrow. Is that fair?"

Kol and Klaus looked at each other. "Fine," they said at once and each picked a box, bringing it over to Amy, who'd sat down on a stool in the only clear spot in the attic. "Okay," she said. "What do we have here?"

"I don't know," Kol replied, proffering the box in Amy's direction. "It's not labeled or anything."

"Why not?" Amy asked.

"I don't know," Kol shrugged. "I don't even know if it's my stuff!"

Amy opened the box. "Well, let's see!" She pulled some children's toys out of it, a broken teacup, a doll's head with cascading blonde hair, and a stuffed dog with a hole in the side, leaking stuffing. "Unless you're into tea parties and dolls, I don't think this stuff is yours, Kol," she told him. "In fact, I think we should just toss it."

The boys agreed and soon, quite a few things had been zapped away as trash.

"You know, it's been an hour," Klaus told her. "You said we could stop after an hour."

"Look at how much progress we've made!" Amy replied. "Why would you wan to stop now?"

"Cause we have better things to do with our time," Kol replied. "So you can keep cleaning all you want, but we're stopping for the day."

"I have to agree with him," Klaus replied, then turned to his brother. "You wanna go get a drink?"

"Sure," Kol agreed. "Maybe get in a good kill or two? There was a rather spectacular killing in an old cemetery not far from A bar called Enid's. No one knows who did it, though. If they _did_ know, I should like to meet them."

"I heard about that," Klaus replied, nodding, "Me too."

They left, thinking they were gonna go to a bar, but ended up at Elijah and Selina's instead.

"Did you see that news report about the cemetery that got vandalized?" Klaus asked Selina. "And that the caretaker got his throat ripped out?"

"Yeah," Selina nodded. "I saw that. Interesting, huh?" But her eyes were averted as she spoke and Klaus sensed something was up.

"Was it you?" Klaus asked, a grin curving his lips. "Did _you_ do it?"

"Yes," Selina said quietly, a determined look on her face. "I did it."

"And how did Elijah feel about your Lonely Heart tendencies surfacing?" Klaus asked.

"Those aren't my Lonely Heart tendencies," Selina corrected. "The people I killed murdered someone in my family and I was just issuing payback."

"Wait," Kol said, eying Selina. "Were you one of Lonely Heart's followers? If so, Kol Mikaelson. It's nice to meet you."

Selina took his hand and smiled as Klaus told him, "she wasn't just a follower of Lonely Heart. She _was_ Lonely Heart!"

"You're kidding!" Kol replied. "So-the vampire Father has been chasing for so long is-is _her_? She's sitting right here in Elijah's house?"

"Yep," Selina grinned. "And he can't do anything about it, no matter how much he wants to! And nice to meet you," she told Kol.

"So, do you still kill people?" Kol asked, his face filled with interest.

"No," Selina shook her head. "I can't anymore. Elijah's orders. And as much as I don't like being ordered around, it's a small price to pay for the stability I've wanted my entire life."

Just then, the doorbell rang Selina went to open it inviting Valerie, who was now Colin's girlfriend, into the house. "He's in his room," she told her. "I assume you're looking for Colin?"

"Yep," Valerie nodded, pushing her dark hair back. "Thanks, Mrs. Mikaelson." She ran up to meet Colin and Selina turned her attention back to Kol. "Sorry about that," she said. "So, tell me about you."

"I'm Nik's brother," Kol replied, giving Klaus a clap on the shoulder.

"What?" Selina asked, her eyes widening as she turned her gaze on Klaus. "How come, in all the time you and I were married, I never met him?"

"I was busy," Kol told her. "I'm sorry." He kissed her hand.

"All right," Selina nodded. "I guess I can accept that. And we're meeting now, which is good."

"Amy made us clean out the attic for an hour today," Klaus told Selina. "This is what we're doing to get away from her."

Just then, Klaus phone rang. "Hello?" He replied after putting the phone to his ear.

"I was going through the attic and I found something," Amy replied breathlessly. "You and Kol need to come home right now!"

"Oh, are you serious?" Klaus asked. "What could be in the attic that's got you so worked up?"

"I can't explain it to you over the phone," Amy replied. "Just come back!"

Klaus sighed. "Fine," he said. "We'll be back as soon as we can." He then ended the call. "Amy says you and I have to come home," he said. "Apparently, she found something in the attic that frightened her."

"Oh, all right," Kol replied. "If we have to go." But he turned back to Selina almost immediately. "I know I'll be seeing _you_ again soon, Lonely Heart."

"Great," Selina replied. "But I just go by 'Selina' now."

"All right," Kol replied as he and Klaus headed toward the door. "Whatever you say."

* * *

"All right," Klaus said to Amy as he and Kol headed back inside. "What's going on, Amy?"

He paused when he saw Amy sitting next to Margot on the couch. Both women's faces were ashen and they looked shocked.

"Are-are you okay?" He asked, getting down on his knees next to her. Her hands shook as she held out a gold chain that had a large black diamond hanging from it. "I found this in the attic," Amy replied. "Where did it come from?"

Klaus sighed. "Is that all?" He asked. "It was our mother's. It came into her possession just before we became vampires, but she never told us how she got it."

"This...the stone, anyway...belongs to the Council. They've been looking for it forever!" Amy cried.

"A thousand years, I guess, if your mother got it right before she turned," Margot added. "Is your mother a witch? Or was she a witch before she became a vampire?"

"Yes," Klaus nodded. "She was a witch, but then one day, she lost the majority of her powers. She can do little things, and mostly does dark magic now, but that's it."

"This is the Noir diamond," Margot said quietly. "It was something that was owned by Hazel's father Conal, and it's a source of great power, the only one of its kind. Conal, being a sort of fool, decided that since he chose Hazel to have the highest position in magical kind after his own, he would give the diamond to one of his other daughters. They fought over it, just as they had over which of them could do the most powerful display of magic. One day, Vanessa got hold of it and it disappeared. Hazel always was bitter about her father's choice to give the diamond to someone other than her, when _she_ would use it responsibly. She's been looking for it so she could put it in the Council safe for _years._"

"So, is that what you're going to do?" Kol asked her. "Give it to the council?"

"I know we should," Margot replied. "But I don't know. I'll have to think about it."

"Who said you got to choose what to do with it?" Amy asked. "If it belongs with the council, it belongs with the council!"

"Give it to me," Klaus replied, snatching it away. "I'll keep it. And ask Enid about it next time I see her. But no one is to touch it until then. Do you both understand me?"

Amy and Margot both sighed. "All right," Amy replied. "But I really don't see why it can't just go where it belongs."

* * *

"So, how are you feeling today?" Adrian asked Helene over breakfast. "Feeling sick yet?"

Helene just rolled her eyes. "Ever since we decided to try and get me pregnant again, you've asked me that in the morning. And I will give you the same answer I always do: I'm _fine_."

"Awww!" Adrian looked sad.

"What's the matter?" Helene asked. "It'll happen when it happens. There's no rush!" She paused. "Unless it benefits your ego somehow for it to happen right away."

"Maybe," Adrian replied. "Maybe that's it."

"I'm sorry," Helene put her arms around him. "But I just don't think it's happened yet. Either that, or this one's coming in a lot more quietly than its sisters did."

"Oh, I hope that's the case." Adrian replied.

"Nice to see you so eager this time," Helene grinned. "With the others, you were terrified."

"Well, this time, I have your solemn oath that you won't let the kid use me for magical target practice, right?" Adrian asked.

"Yes," Helene nodded. "That's true."

"Hence why I'm able to be excited," Adrian replied.

Helene sighed. "I know I've apologized to you about this before, but I'm _really_ sorry I let Lenora use you for magical target practice. It was cruel and I shouldn't have done it."

"I know you're sorry," Adrian nodded. "And it wasn't like I couldn't have done you equal or worse harm if I'd thought to."

"You're right," Helene nodded. "You-you never spoke or acted out against me, even when you should have. Why?"

Adrian sighed. "Cause I remember the times I put you in the hospital after letting my strength and powers run wild," he said. "You don't forget something like that. I nearly killed you...twice! And I just...I didn't want it to happen again. I didn't want to let myself get so angry that you got hurt or died. That's why I never fought back. And I wanted your parents to look at me and say 'We don't resent letting our daughter marry this man'. Cause there was a time they were thinking of separating us and having you marry a warlock because your father couldn't stand to watch you get hurt at my hands."

"So you did all that for _me?"_ Helene asked. "You restrained yourself for _me_? Well, sorry I did such a crappy job repaying you."

"Well, never mind," Adrian replied. "We're moving on now, remember?"

"Right," Helene nodded, clearing her throat. "We're moving on."

Adrian opened up the paper, his eyes widening. "Oh, my god," he breathed.

"What?" Helene asked.

A cemetery was vandalized, bodies were dug up, and the caretaker was killed!" Adrian exclaimed. "His throat was ripped out. And the graves that were vandalized were from people of the "Talbot and Lucas families. You know, my sister married a Talbot and she's always had a bad temper. You think she had something to do with this?"

"I don't know," Helene shrugged. "But if it _was_ her, we should talk to her and make sure she doesn't kill anyone else!"

* * *

"You think I did _what?"_ Roxie asked Adrian and Helene with a chuckle. "No, seriously; tell me that again."

"We think that you killed someone and defiled some graves at a cemetery near here," Adrian said to his sister. "Maybe you thought it was just a fun little prank, but it's all over the papers and the news, so you can't do it again!"

"Well, I hate to break it to you, Sherlock," Roxie said to her brother. "But that wasn't me! I didn't have anything to do with it. What makes you think I did?"

"Two graves were dug up," Adrian replied. "One belonged to a Lucas, the other belonged to a Talbot. Isn't Talbot Vince's last name?"

"Yes!" Roxie nodded. "And I've been trying to keep him from finding out about what happened at the cemetery since it came out in the papers. And let me tell you, that has been _very_ difficult!"

"So it honestly wasn't you?" Helene asked her.

"Why would I mess with the graves of my husband's family?" Roxie asked her.

"Cause his parents nearly killed you just so they could find out about Vanessa?" Adrian replied. "You were a little girl when it happened, and maybe resentment toward the family has bubbled up in you after all these years..."

"No!" Roxie replied sharply. "It wasn't me, all right? I didn't do it, and I couldn't tell you who did, so can we change the subject, please? And if you want to order something, do it."

"What's the problem here?" Enid asked.

"My dear brother accused me of violating the graves of a Lucas and a Talbot," Roxie replied. "And I didn't do it!"

"I saw that," Enid said, her face, which had been very bright lately, suddenly filling with worry. "I would say the feud was showing up again, full force. But that just doesn't feel right."

Just then, someone came into the bar and distracted her. "Hi, Enid," Jake said, sitting down for a drink. Enid smiled and ran to hug him. "That doesn't look like your boyfriend," Addie remarked as she came down the stairs from Enid's apartment.

"It's not," Roxie told her, going to hug him too. "It's Uncle Jake."

"We were talking about the incident at the cemetery with the Talbot and Lucas graves," Enid told Jake. "Any ideas? I would say the feud has exploded again, but that doesn't seem right, especially with the way the caretaker was killed. That seemed more like a vampire did it."

"But what vampire would have any interest in the Talbot/Lucas feud?" Enid asked. "I mean," she said, turning to Roxie, "I know people from your family are hybrids, but...I don't know."

"I might," Jake replied. "Selina."

"What about her?" Enid asked.

"She was there when I told Diana and Joey about the feud," he said. "And I might have mentioned the part I had in it, and how my part in it led to my death. Do you think Selina would do honor killing?"

"I don't know," Enid replied.

"She has a temper," Adrian said. "Remember, she was Lonely Heart once."

"If anyone will ask her about this," Jake replied. "It should be me."

"All right," Enid nodded. "Good luck, Jake." Then, she turned around quickly, slapping Helene's hand away as she reached for Adrian's beer bottle. "Don't drink that!" She snapped. "It's not good for you or the baby!"


	14. Caught in the Middle

After Selina had dropped off Anna and then returned home from the movies, she'd thought about what she'd just done. She _had_ let her control slip a little since she'd gone after the men who'd disrespected her family. Even Uncle Jake had been shocked. And she _hated_ to disappoint her uncle. When he'd come to talk to her about what she'd done, it'd had affected her more than any of Elijah's scolding ever had.

_She heard the knock on the library door and looked up as Jake had come in. "Are you busy?" He'd asked. "I hope I'm not disturbing you."_

_"No," she'd shook her head and went to hug him. "It's so great to see you!" He let her hug him and set her back down. "I think we have to talk," he said. "Have you killed anyone recently?"_

_Selina sighed. "You found out about what I did at the cemetery, didn't you?"_

_"Yes," Jake nodded. "And did you do it because I told you about their part in my death?"_

_"Yes," Selina nodded. "Uncle Jake, they caused you to die, and messed with our entire family besides. And I'm in a position to avenge us, so I did!"_

_"So you don't think that what you did was wrong?" Jake asked her._

_"No," Selina shook her head. Definitely not."_

_"Why not?" Jake asked._

_"Cause they started it!" Selina explained. "They got you killed and caused your family to have to completely deny what they were, which made _my_ life a living hell!"_

_"I know things weren't pleasant for you," Jake told her. "You've made that abundantly clear over the years. But you have just made things worse. We could get drawn into this nonsense now. Who knows which member of our family they'll kill to get revenge."_

_"Oh, relax!" Selina replied. "How can they take revenge on us when they don't even know it was me who did anything? I promise I was careful."_

_"Even so," Jake replied. "What you did was foolish, stupid, and unnecessary. I'm disappointed in you."_

_She was taken aback by this. "I honestly thought everything would be all right afterwards," she said, sighing. "I guess I didn't think it through very hard."_

_"You can't blame yourself entirely," Jake replied. "You didn't get the Lockwood temper on your own."_

_"So, what happens now?" Selina asked Jake, her heart sinking in a way it hadn't since she'd encouraged Gregory to become a werewolf. "Obviously, I can't take back what I did!"_

_"No," Jake replied, taking her hand with a sigh. "Now, all we have to do is wait and see what happens."_

Yeah, she thought as she ran her fingers through her hair. "I kinda really screwed up, didn't I?"

Just then, Elijah came into the kitchen with Felix trailing behind him and gave her a look. Then, the cat hissed at her.

"Now you've got him mad at me too?" Selina asked.

"You brought it on yourself," Elijah told her. "You have no right to be angry at what you yourself have wrought."

"Oh, please!" Selina scoffed. "Will you _listen_ to yourself? Who talks like that?"

"I do," Elijah replied simply. "What do you have to say for yourself?"

"You know," Selina shot back, "You and my uncle should get together and talk about how horrible I am."

"I'm sure it would be quite a conversation," Elijah replied, without looking at her.

"You know, you seem awfully cranky," Selina observed. "Anything I can do to..._help_ with that?" She began kissing his neck.

"No," Elijah said, trying his best to stay firm. "And even if there _were_, I wouldn't have time now, because I'm much too busy."

"Why don't you take a break," Selina suggested. "Come on, _please_?"

He ignored her as they walked down the hall to his office. Surprisingly, he let her in, shut the door, and his demeanor totally changed as she asked one more time, "Please?"

"Possibly," Elijah replied, picking her up and sitting her down on the desk.

Selina grinned at him, slipped off her blouse, and threw it on the floor, revealing her red, lacy bra underneath. Then, she removed the bra and lay back on the desk. "Wanna help me with the rest?" She asked, pushing his papers to the floor to give herself more wiggle room. She expected him to let out a shriek of horror at the sight of his neatly organized papers being thrown in disarray, but she heard nothing. Then, she saw him leaning over her, his tongue gliding over his upper lip. "Looks like some likes me now."

Elijah began breathing hard. "I hate it when you do this to me!" He whispered and unzipped his pants. "I hate how you can just look at me with those big, beautiful eyes of yours and con your way out of anything." He slipped off her panties, sat her up, put his arms around her, and kissed her.

"Or maybe it's because you just don't like to be mad at me," Selina replied. Then, Elijah picked her up and brought her to the sofa bed, climbing in beside her so that she could remove his shirt and tie. Once that was done, he took her in his arms again, kissing her furiously. He worked down her body and she gasped when she felt the pressure of his lips against her hard nipples. "Oh, Elijah," she gasped, feeling her hips buck upward. "Oh, Elijah!"

Things built up until finally he pushed into her and everything exploded around her. When she was next aware, she was lying in the sofa bed, her dark hair glistening with sweat. Letting out a breath, she turned around and found him grinning at her. "Well, look at that," she said. "I have a handsome man in my bed!"

He chuckled and took her in his arms. "My beautiful darling," he whispered. "Sometimes, I just don't know what to do with you!"

Selina giggled and snuggled against him. "I think you do," she said. "And I'm ready to do it again!"

They kissed a couple of times and when they pulled apart, Elijah said, "Why not? It's much easier when Felix isn't in here staring at me."

"Did he stay in the kitchen?" Selina asked.

"Probably," Elijah replied. "He'll be fine. Now, where were we?"

* * *

"So, what do you think we're supposed to do with this?" Kol asked Margot as he shut the door following Amy's departure from dropping off Savannah. He was talking about the Noir diamond, which he held in one hand while gripping Savannah with the other. She reached for it, presumably so she could put it in her mouth.

"Oh, no, darling," Kol told her, holding it out of the grasp of her tiny hand. "This isn't for you."

"I don't know," Margot replied. "What did my sister say?"

"She just said that Amy and Klaus want us to keep it safe," Kol replied. "Where would be a good place to hide it?"

"Oh, I don't know!" Margot replied. "Why the hell did our siblings volunteer us for something like this anyway?"

"I don't know," Kol replied and put Savannah in Margot's lap. "But we can ask."

He called Klaus and didn't waste time when his brother answered the phone. "Why do Margot and I have to look after this thing?" He asked. "And is it gonna be forever?"

"Not forever, no," Klaus replied. "Just until Enid is ready to enact her plans for it. It shouldn't take too long."

"And just what is this thing?" Kol asked. "I mean, obviously it's a diamond, but what's it for?"

"Mother took it years ago," Klaus replied. "It's some very powerful diamond that will eventually make Enid the most powerful being on earth. And I'm all right with that. Better her than Hazel. And she needed a place to store it until then."

"And so you just offered up Margot and me as keepers?" Kol asked. "Why couldn't you do it?"

"Because Enid thinks it'll make things too easy to figure out if I kept track of it, since I know her so well and all," Klaus replied. "And she doesn't know you, so no one will think to come after you to look for it."

"Oh, wonderful," Kol replied. "We're as good as bait. I really appreciate it, brother."

"Don't be so upset," Klaus replied. "I'm sure Enid will find some splendid way to pay you back for your help once she becomes the most powerful being in the universe."

"She better," Kol replied. "It's the only thing that will make this worth it." He ended the call and turned back to Margot. "So," she replied, "what did your brother say?"

"This belongs to a woman who's angling to become the most powerful witch in the universe, but is battling for the position with her sister," Kol replied. "They both need this and will most likely kill each other to get it, which means you and I basically have targets on our backs."

"From both of the women, or just one?" Margot asked, eyes widening as she clutched Savannah.

"Just one," Kol replied. "Apparently, the other is a friend."

"Well, that eases my mind a little bit," Margot replied. "Where do you think we should put it?"

"How about you make it invisible?" Kol asked Margot. "If the people who wanna take it can't see it, it'll be more difficult for them to get their hands on it!"

"Interesting," Margot replied. They went to the bedroom, put the diamond in a compartment in the dresser, and then Margot made it vanish. "Now," she said, "We can't forget it's there, otherwise this won't be much help."

"Oh, I'll remember," Kol told her. "Don't you worry."

Margot nodded and they went back to playing with Savannah, even though worry about the people who might come to take the diamond still lingered in their minds.

* * *

"So, did they get the diamond hidden?" Klaus asked when Amy came back with Savannah.

"Sounds like it," Amy nodded. "You can assure Enid everything is okay the next time you go to the bar."

"I might do that right now," Klaus replied. "Is that all right with you?"

"Sure," Amy nodded. "Go ahead and go."

Klaus got in his car and drove to the bar, striding in and ordering a beer.

"So," Enid told him as she poured it, "everything okay?"

"With me, personally, yes," Klaus replied. "And regarding that object you gave me, Kol and Margot assure me they have it safe somewhere."

"Good," Enid replied. "They shouldn't have it in their possession for very long. I'll probably be taking it back in a couple of days."

"I'm surprised it's that soon," Klaus replied. "Why the urgency?"

"Cause you can only hide things from my sister for so long," Enid replied. "That's the first reason." Just then, the bell above the bar door jingled and Enid looked up, letting out a shriek that caused Klaus to start violently before she bounded over the bar and ran toward the front door, throwing her arms around the handsome, dark-eyed, curly-haired man who'd just come in, knocking him to the ground.

"That's what I like about this place," he chuckled as she helped him up and dusted off his coat. "The personal service."

"Sorry, Owen," Enid apologized. "I didn't bruise you, did I?"

"Oh, no, dear, Oh!" His assurances were cut off as she kissed him. "I have a room upstairs," she breathed. "It'll save us from having to drive all the way to my apartment."

"I know you're eager," Owen told her. "And I am too, after five hundred years, but really, Enid? In the middle of a work day?"

"Oh, that's nothing!" Enid shook her head. "And no one would mind!" She then heard a noise and saw Klaus peering at the couple curiously. "I want you to meet someone," she said. "Owen, this is Klaus, Klaus this is my boyfriend, Owen."

They shook hands. "Nice to meet the man who's finally making it so Enid won't have to sleep alone," Klaus remarked.

"And it's nice to know she has friends in this place to keep herself occupied until it's time for me to return," Owen returned graciously. Then, he looked at Enid as Klaus returned to his drink. "Anyone else you'd like me to meet?"

Just then, Addie and Joey came striding in together. "I have to wonder about those two," Owen said, noticing them immediately. "Since this is America, aren't they a bit young to be in a bar? And why is that poor boy limping?"

"Actually, they're my godchildren, Joey and Addie," Enid told him. "Addie works here, and I raised Joey upstairs for the first few months of his life. He limps because I brought him back to life and that's Hazel's consequence. They're a common sight, believe me."

"It was then that Addie approached the bar with Joey trailing slowly behind her. "That's your boyfriend!" She cried out, grinning. "You're much handsomer than your picture," she told him.

"Well, thank you," he replied, blushing a little. "How kind of you to say."

"You're a little early for work," Enid told Addie.

"I know," Addie nodded. "I just...I need to talk to you sometime, but since Owen is here, it can wait. It's about me not healing like I'm supposed to."

"I told you it's nothing to worry about," Enid replied.

"But I have to!" Addie said. "Since every time you tell me things are okay, you look terrified!"

"Look," Joey added. "I know my leg doesn't heal because of magic Hazel worked on me, but don't you think Addie deserves the truth if Hazel is doing that to her too? Isn't there some way you could find out?"

Enid gave Joey a long look. "I'll do whatever I can to figure out what's going on with Addie, I promise," she told him. "But now that Owen is here, I'd like to spend some time with him first."

They disappeared and ended up back at Enid's other apartment. Owen watched in shock as she began undressing.

"You look distressed," Enid said. "That's not what I was hoping for."

"No, I know," Owen replied. "But how could you just leave that boy when he seemed so upset? Enid, if you know something that could save his sister, you have to tell the both of them!"

"I can't!" Enid shook her head. "Not yet, anyway. I will when it's time, but it's not." She sighed. "_Please_ don't talk to me about this anymore. Just...let's get into bed and not think about anything anymore, at least for a little while."

Owen gave her a long look, but said finally, "All right. Soon though, you're going to tell these children what's wrong with them. You know, don't you?"

"Of course," Enid nodded. "And soon, you and I will go back to the bar, and tell them the truth. I promise."

"All right," Owen nodded, undressing himself as she finished, then kissed her. "Good girl."

* * *

The old man winced as he went back into the dormitory room where all the prisoners were staying.

"They didn't beat you too bad, did they, George?" Jonathan asked him.

"Not worse than usual," George replied. "I really hate it here."

"Well, they didn't bring us here to throw us a party," Jonathan replied.

"How is it that you're so happy?" George asked. "Three guys committed suicide yesterday, and you act like every day is a walk on the beach."

It was then that Jonathan took the picture of Amy and Savannah out of his pocket. "It's cause I have these two waiting for me when I get out," he said.

"How can you have that?" The older man asked Jonathan in amazement. "They take that stuff away!"

"I'm in good with Astrid," Jonathan replied. "She's allowed me a comfort or two that isn't open to everyone else."

"Is that so?" George asked in amazement.

"Yes," Jonathan replied. Just then, the door opened and Jonathan quickly put the picture in his jacket pocket. "All right, you worms!" He cried. "To bed with you! Now!"

"All right, all right," Jonathan replied. "We heard you, now fuck off!" He crawled into his bunk, the lights were extinguished, and his eyes closed.

He was surprised however, when he was suddenly roused from sleep. "Come with me!" A dark figure yelled and pulled him out of bed.

"I know this is supposed to be a place of punishment," Jonathan said as he got up off the floor. "But I don't think I deserve to be so rudely aroused from slumber!"

"You've gotten a temporary pardon," the dark figure said. "Astrid needs to see you. Now get dressed and come on!"

Jonathan dressed quickly and he and his minder went to see Astrid, who was pacing nervously around her office.

"I have him," the hulking man told her. She paused in her pacing to look at the pair of them. "Oh, thank god!" she cried. "I'm so glad you're here. It's the most terrible thing!"

"What?" Jonathan replied. "Astrid, what is it? What has this horrible thing got to do with me?"

"Savannah's been kidnapped!" Astrid burst out. "She's being used as leverage so that her kidnappers can get this diamond Hazel is looking for. Apparently, Klaus and Amy are supposed to have had it, they gave it to Kol and Margot to hide, and when Margot wouldn't tell them where the diamond was, they took Savannah and are keeping her until Margot tells them where it is!"


	15. Enid's Big Lie

"What do you mean Savannah has been kidnapped?" Jonathan asked, his eyes wide.

"I heard it from Amy who heard it from Margot," Astrid replied. "These people came looking for the diamond, and, as I told you, when they didn't get what they wanted, they took Savannah as leverage. And no, I don't know who they are."

"Well, who could we talk to about this?" Jonathan asked. "Who_ would _have some idea about the identity of the kidnappers?"

Astrid sighed. "Come with me," she said. They disappeared and wound up at Kol and Margot's. Amy was sobbing mightily while Margot tried to comfort her, and Klaus was looking like an animal about to bite. "Astrid, what are you thinking?" He asked her angrily. "Isn't it bad enough my daughter has been taken? Why do you have to bring_...that_...into my house?"

But Amy saw Jonathan and ran into his arms. "Some men just took her!" She told him, sniffling. "And we don't know who they are or anything."

"But we _do_ know what they want, right?" He asked her, so intent on his goal of saving Savannah that he didn't even savor her touch.

"The diamond," Margot replied, her face ashen.

"Why the hell didn't you give it to them?" Amy asked her sister angrily.

"Cause Klaus said Enid didn't want us to!" Margot replied. "I was just doing what I was told!"

"And since when is an object more important than your niece's life?" Klaus raged at her. "If the choice was between her being taken and giving up the fucking diamond, it should have been easy to decide which way to go!" He grabbed a handful of her hair, giving it a strong tug, and she was so full of shame that she didn't have the strength to fight back.

"Let her go," Kol said quietly, standing up to his brother. "Fighting like this won't do us any good."

Klaus let her go and threw her back against the sofa. "What do you suggest we do now?"

"Well, if the people who came came for the diamond, we know there's only one person they could be working for," Astrid sighed. "_If_ you could call her a person, that is. Hazel."

"So should we go talk to Enid?" Amy asked, stopping her crying and getting to business. "Tell her what happened? Maybe she could help."

"Kol and I will go," Margot volunteered. "Since this whole mess is our fault, anyway. You two stay here and wait to see if they call for some sort of ransom."

"And don't forget to grab the diamond before you go," Klaus reminded her. "The sooner they get it, the sooner I get my daughter back."

Margot went and got the diamond, then, they headed to Enid's to see if they could get her help.

* * *

When they strode into the bar, Owen was the first person they saw. "Hey," Margot said, approaching him. "Is Enid around? We have to talk to her. It's an urgent matter."

"She's upstairs," He told her. "I'll get her. Who wants her?"

"My name's Margot," Margot replied. "And I think Hazel has kidnapped my niece."

"My god, I'm sorry," he replied, sucking in his breath. "I'll tell her and be back immediately. Would you like a drink while you wait?"

"Sure," Margot replied.

"Take what you want," Owen said. "I'm sure Enid will understand." He then darted upstairs and roused his lover from her post coital slumber.

"What, what?" She muttered. "I'm tired. Let me sleep!"

"You have to get downstairs," he told her. "Hazel has had someone kidnapped!"

_That_ got her attention and she rubbed her eyes and sat up. "Who got kidnapped?" she replied, hopping out of bed and zapping some clothes on.

"She says her name is Margot," Owen replied. "Does that ring any bells? And I told her she could have a drink. I hope you don't mind."

"No, no," Enid shook her head. "Dealing with Hazel, she could probably use one." Enid went downstairs and Owen followed. "So," she said, "Who has Hazel had kidnapped?"

"Savannah," Margot said immediately. "And she's just a baby!" She held out the Noir diamond. "They wanted to get their hands on this, so I assume it's Hazel, anyway, and they're holding my niece as collateral until we give it to them."

"Well, that's not right!" Enid replied. "Come with me."

They went back up to her apartment and sat on her bed as she called for her sister. "Hazel! Get your ass here now!" She yelled. "That's not a request. That's an order!"

They heard Hazel's cackle before she appeared and lounged in her sister's desk chair, smirk on her face. She most likely knew exactly why she was there. "Yes? May I help you?"

"Why are you kidnapping babies now?" Enid asked.

"I'm _not_ kidnapping babies now," Hazel corrected. "I just took one because they wouldn't give me the diamond." She noticed Margot held it in her hand. "Marvelous, you've changed your mind. Give it here." She held out her hand with its neatly manicured nails.

"Don't!" Enid said to Margot.

"Why should I listen to you?" Margot asked. "That's what got Savannah kidnapped in the first place."

"Smart girl!" Hazel replied. "Just hand the jewel over."

Just as Margot was about to give it up, a flash of light hit Hazel in the gut so that she went flying off the chair and into the opposite wall. By the time she'd recovered and was able to sit up, Enid had the diamond.

"You're not gonna get this," Enid told her. "Now just tell us where the baby is."

"Now see, what you don't seem to understand is that if you just give me the diamond, I'll give you the baby," Hazel told her, bits of wall clinging to her blonde hair. "It shouldn't be so hard for you to process. No diamond, no baby." Kol then tried to hit her, but she disappeared. "Silly boy," Hazel replied. "You're one of Ena's weak little creations, aren't you? How quaint."

"Bitch," Kol muttered, once it became apparent that Hazel was gone for the moment.

"What are we gonna tell Klaus and Amy?" Margot asked Enid.

"We'll tell them that we're gonna find her without Hazel's help," Enid replied. "That way, we won't owe her anything, especially not the diamond."

Kol and Margot then looked at one another despairingly. Klaus and Amy weren't gonna like this.

* * *

"Well?" Klaus burst out when Kol and Margot returned empty handed. "Just where the hell is my daughter?"

"Enid said that she'd find her," Margot said. "But she insists on doing it without Hazel's help because that would mean giving up the diamond. So it might take awhile."

"We can't afford 'awhile' Klaus growled. "She could be hurt or desiccated by the time Enid finally decides to get her ass in gear and look. I say we start an investigation of our own."

"But we don't know where to look is the problem," Amy replied. "As much as I hate to say it, as much as it hurts my heart, we don't have many choices in this situation, do we? We either depend on Enid, or Hazel, and I think you and I both know which one is more trustworthy."

"Fine," Klaus replied. "You stay here and wait while Enid sits on her thumbs, but I won't! I'm gonna go look for Savannah. I don't care how long it takes me!" He left the house, muttering swear words under his breath, not even noticing that Jonathan had followed him. What was Enid's problem anyway? What could she have going on that was more important than saving his daughter? Nothing, was the answer, he told himself. Nothing at all. Then, he turned as he heard the sound of a cleared throat from the backseat of his car.

"May I suggest a place to look?" Jonathan asked. "Do you mind?"

"What are you doing?" Klaus asked him. "Get the fuck out of here!"

"I hardly think such language is appropriate when you and I both have a common goal of wanting to save your daughter," Jonathan replied. "I'm here because I want to help you."

Klaus scoffed. "Ever since we met, all you've wanted to do is steal my wife and daughter. And now you expect me to believe that you want to _help_ me?"

"Well, you might find it distasteful, but I love Savannah as much as you do, and I don't want to see her meet an unfortunate end when she's only a child," Jonathan replied. "And personally, I think you'd have better luck with a warlock on your side, since you're fighting more of the same. Don't you agree? I think it's only logical."

"Fine," Klaus replied. "But you don't speak unless it's to offer me assistance, nor do you use your magic unless I tell you. Do you understand?"

"Is this how things started between you and Alistair?" Jonathan replied. "No wonder it took so long for him to like you."

Klaus let out a growl, and shut his eyes, thinking of his adorable, redheaded baby daughter. Cause it was the only way he would get through this. He knew that for sure.

* * *

"All right," Owen said to Enid the next time Joey and Addie came to the bar together. "Now you have to tell them. You promised!"

Enid sighed. "I suppose now that we're all here, it _would _be the best time."

"So why aren't I healing?" Addie pressed. "Tell me!"

"Because..." Enid got out. "Because you're not supposed to heal instantly. And neither is Joey. The fact that you did was part of a spell I put on you that's wearing off now."

"Why would you put a spell on me?" Addie asked.

"It was both of you," Enid said. "I put a spell on both of you to keep you safe from my sister."

"Cause you brought me back from the dead," Joey said. "I know that."

"Yeah," Enid sighed. "But you don't know_ all _of it." She took Owen's hand and looked deeply into his eyes. "You know how you and I always wanted to have children?"

"Yes," Owen nodded. "And you told me that if I gave you the proper materials, you would work it out someday."

"Well," Enid gestured at Addie and Joey. "Ta da."

"What?" The three of them asked at the same time.

"Are you saying that our parents aren't our parents?" Addie asked.

"No," Enid shook her head. "No, they're not. You're Owen's and mine. Witch and warlock to the core."

"But...but..." Addie shook her head. "No, this isn't possible! I'm a VAMPIRE!"

Enid waved her hands and both Joey and Addie's rings disappeared. "Now go outside," she said.

"But it's daylight!" Addie protested. "Without our rings, we're gonna die!" She watched in amazement as her brother took the leap of faith, went outside, and came back in without a mark on him. "Well, whatever we are," he told his sister, "we're certainly not vampires anymore."

"Oh, my god," Addie replied.

"You see?" Enid told her. "I wouldn't lie to you."

Addie scoffed. "You've been lying to me my whole life! I hate you!" She looked at Owen. "I don't hate _you_," she told him. "I'm sure you're lovely and once we've all recovered from the shock she caused us, I bet we'll get along fine."

"Yeah," Owen nodded, still looking a bit dazed. "Sure. Of course."

Addie then left the bar with Joey following.

"That didn't go as well as I hoped," Enid said.

"Well, what did you expect?" Owen asked. "That you'd tell them their whole life was a lie, and then in spite of that, they'd be ready, willing and eager to be a family?"

"Yeah," Enid replied. "That's what I hoped. Foolish, I know, but I've taken care of them for so long, I thought the transition would be easy."

"And what about the people that raised them?" Owen asked. "Have you told _them_ the truth yet?"

"No," Enid shook her head. "But I bet they'll have an even worse reaction to the news than Addie and Joey did!"

"Well, I don't blame them," Owen replied flatly. "I think I've had enough good news for one day. I need to go out. I don't know when I'll be back, so try not to get yourself into any more trouble, okay? Maybe spend some time looking for that poor child your sister kidnapped."

"Yeah, okay," Enid sniffed. "Just go, if that's what you want, all right?"

Owen stood up, nodded, and strode out of the bar, leaving Enid alone and in tears. When she'd finally calmed down, she took Owen's advice and started to make a list of places that Savannah might be, so if Klaus and Amy came to inquire, she'd have something hopeful to tell them.


	16. Doing Battle With Hazel

"Do you think we should feel bad about all this?" Margot asked Kol in bed one night. "I mean, if we'd just given Hazel the diamond in the first place, Klaus wouldn't be having to scour the woods looking for Savannah and Amy wouldn't be making herself sick waiting for a ransom demand that might never come."

"I don't think we should feel sorry at all," Kol assured her. "This is more Hazel's problem than anyone else's. We're not responsible for her crazy behavior. But would you feel better if we started looking for her too?"

"Yes," Margot replied. "I _would_ like to have a more active role in looking for her. What should we do first?"

"I think we need to go back to the bar," Kol replied. "We need to be the ones to push Enid into some sort of action, because as my brother pointed out, who knows how long it will be if we just let her handle things herself?"

"So true," Margot replied. "So tomorrow, we go back to the bar. I'll make a note of that in my appointment book."

"No chance of you forgetting cause I'll pick you up out of bed and dress you myself if you do."

"You'd dress me?" Margot asked, her voice filled with amusement. "I thought you only liked taking things off rather than putting them on."

"You never know," Kol replied. "I'm a man of depth and surprises."

"Is that so?" Margot asked.

"Yes," Kol nodded. "It is." He paused, his hands running over her stomach and giving her bare breasts a squeeze. "Say, now that we're up, do you think we might...?"

"No," Margot replied firmly. "Go to sleep, Kol."

"Well, all right," Kol sighed. "But you have to give me points for trying."

"Oh, I do," Margot told him as she pulled the covers over herself. "Don't worry about that."

* * *

"Let me guess why you're here," Enid said as Kol and Margot strode into the bar the next day. "You want to know where Savannah is, or want me to give you the diamond so you can give it to Hazel. Am I right?"

"Yeah, you're right," Margot replied. "For my sister's sake, you know. Having Savannah be gone is just doing a number on her nerves and Kol and I want to do something to help rather than sitting at home on our asses doing nothing."

"All right," Enid replied and took out the list of locations she'd made up for the people that might have Savannah and handed it to Margot. "There's a list of the places Savannah could be," she said. "I don't know specifically which one, though. There's a lot there, so it might take you awhile to search them all."

"Ah, don't worry," Kol replied. "We'll figure something out. Thank you, Enid." Then, they left the bar and went back to Klaus and Amy's, where Amy was sitting alone in a recliner, her hands gripping the armrests so hard that her knuckles were white.

"I still haven't heard anything!" She cried, running to meet them. "What if Savannah is dead!"

"Of course she wouldn't be dead," Kol tried to assure her. "The kidnappers don't have the diamond, so why destroy what leverage they have if they still haven't gotten what they want?"

"That's a good point," Amy replied as Margot helped her back to her chair. "This is driving me crazy, really."

"Well then you should have something to distract yourself," Margot replied, placing the list of locations on Amy's robed lap. "We got this list from Enid. It's places where she thinks Savannah could be being held. There are a lot of them, so I say we divide and conquer. What do you think? It could be Kol and me, and you could catch up with Klaus and Jonathan. If they haven't killed each other yet, that is."

"Good," Amy nodded. "Sure, I'll do that."

Margot looked at her sister, who was clad in a ratty bathrobe, pale with dark circles under her eyes, and tangly hair. "Why don't you try showering and dressing before you go?" She suggested as tactfully as she could. "It might make you feel better."

Amy looked down at the white terry cloth robe as if it were the first time she was seeing it, then nodded. "Sure," she said dazedly. "Just let me go clean up. I'll be out in a little bit."

"All right," Margot called after her. "We'll be waiting for you." They split the list in half and wrote half the locations for themselves, and then gave the list to Amy when she got out of the shower. "Good luck finding Klaus," Margot told her sister. "And good luck finding Savannah."

"Thanks," Amy replied. "And you two? Thanks for your help." Then she zapped herself to the first location while Margot and Kol headed to his car

"Well look at us, working together nicely," Jonathan remarked as he, Klaus, and Amy strode toward a house that Jonathan suspected might be the hideout of the people that were holding Savannah hostage. They'd been at this for awhile.

"You better be right this time," Klaus said warningly. "You fucked up at all the other places. And Kol and Margot haven't found anything either."

"This is exactly why I had to come along," Amy chided him. "I knew that if I left the two of you to your own devices, you'd kill each other. And I don't want that!"

Klaus rolled his eyes while Jonathan replied, "Well thank you, Amy." They then got to the front door and Jonathan blasted it off its hinges. Soon after that, there was Savannah's unmistakeable cry, and four men appeared. Two grabbed Jonathan. Another two tried to subdue Klaus, but he pulled their hearts out before they had time.

"Well, that was nauseating," Jonathan remarked, still staring at the bloody organs on the floor. "Never mind!" Amy snapped. "I want my baby! We've been looking for her much longer than we should have. Who knows how much she's suffered by now?"

"Well, just remember if she can still cry, it's a good thing," Jonathan comforted her after Klaus freed him from the men who were holding him. "Whatever solace it brings you, remember that."

"All right," Amy replied, taking a deep breath. "Let's keep going." She reached out and took Klaus' hand in one of hers and Jonathan's in the other. "There," she said. "Now I can keep an eye on both of you." Maneuvering sideways down the hallway, and following the sound of Savannah's cries, they finally reached the door and opened it, seeing nothing in the room, but a crib that contained poor, wailing Savannah, and Hazel smirking deviously from a rocking chair. "I was wondering when you all would show up," she said, rising to her feet. "It took a lot longer than I thought it would, unfortunately for you."

"What did you do to my baby?" Amy asked and began trying to punch and kick Hazel, but since she kept disappearing, Amy just wore herself out. Then, when Hazel was gone, Amy finally looked in the crib and let out a gasp. Savannah's skin was gray and starting to become leathery. "Oh, my god!" She sobbed and backed away until she bumped into Jonathan, who went to look. "I-I don't know what's going on here," he said, feeling genuinely stunned. "She doesn't look dead, but something is _clearly_ not right with her."

Now it was Klaus's turn to look. "She needs blood," he said. "She's looking like this from the lack of it. They've been starving her. Probably some witch plot to make sure the vampire part of her was gone." He then picked his daughter up. "Obviously, it didn't work, did it?"

Amy couldn't look at her, so Klaus gave her to Jonathan to hold instead while he cut himself and tried to get some blood into Savannah's mouth. Slowly but surely, the baby got her color back.

"She's better, Amy," Jonathan assured her. She turned and breathed a sigh of relief. "Now we can go..." She made her way to the door and heard a click.

"Not quite," Hazel's disembodied voice said from around them. "Do you have the diamond?"

"No," Amy replied. "We don't. Were you expecting us to?"

"Well, it's only fair, isn't it?" Hazel asked. "Your daughter for my diamond? I'm not letting you leave here if I get nothing."

"We don't have the diamond," Jonathan told her.

"Yeah," Klaus replied. "Your sister does. If you want it, take it up with her."

"What an idea!" Hazel said and popped out of the room.

"It's still locked!" Amy said after jiggling the door knob.

"Well, we don't need to go through the door," Klaus told her. "We can just disappear, can't we?"

Amy and Jonathan both tried, but nothing happened. "Fuck," Amy whispered, much to Klaus' surprise. "There must be a spell on the room or something that prevents us from leaving."

"They have things like that?" Klaus asked.

"Yeah," Amy sighed. "I'm afraid they do." She sat down in the rocking chair and Jonathan handed her Savannah while he and Klaus took seats on the floor.

Eventually Amy's phone rang and it was Margot. "We're in this house," she said. "Are you here?"

"Yes," Amy replied. "And we have Savannah. They were starving her. Isn't that horrible?"

"Oh, my god," Margot replied. "Were they? And here I thought Hazel was such a nice person. Where are you?" Amy gave her the directions and then warned her, "You can't magic your way in here. There's some sort of spell on the room." A few minutes later, the door opened and Margot and Kol said, "You all wanna leave now?"

"Oh, my god!" Amy replied, standing up. "I didn't even think of that!"

"Won't that be a big 'fuck you' to Hazel?" Klaus grinned. "Let's go. Hazel's probably so busy with Enid now she probably won't even miss us." They then slipped out of the house and drove back to Klaus and Amy's without a problem, even when they stopped at Alistair's to send Jonathan home through the portal. However, Alistair told him to stay.

"Why?" Jonathan asked suspiciously. "What did I do?"

"Something good," Alistair replied. "I'm sure Astrid will want to talk with you further about the consequences of what you just did. Good consequences I mean. So it might be best for you to find a room and stay until she can find time to come back."

"Sure," Jonathan replied. "If you say so, Mr. Fale."

* * *

Klaus and Amy thought everything would be all right after that, but clearly Savannah had deeper issues than they realized from the trauma she'd gone through.

"I just-I don't know what to do," Amy told Selina two weeks later. She had Savannah in her lap. The little girl was content, but Amy dreaded what would happen when she needed to get up and go to the bathroom. "Being kidnapped and starved did something to her. Not that I expected anything different, but she won't let us out of her sight now. She has to sleep in our bed or one of us has to spend the night in her rocking chair, otherwise, she screams her head off like we're gonna leave and never come back. It's even killed our sex life, We haven't been with each other since we brought her back home."

"Isn't there something you can do with magic?" Selina asked. "I mean, sure you've probably thought through all the possibilities by now, but-"

"I know what you're saying," Amy replied. "And there has to be something. Some way to make everyone happy."

"Where's Klaus now?" Selina asked, refilling Amy's teacup. "Did he head for the hills the second you told him you were bringing Savannah over here?"

"I hope he did," Amy said. "He deserves a break just as much as I do. I don't know where they went though, since Enid's is probably full of Hazel-Enid drama no one wants to deal with."

"I don't know," Selina replied.

Just then, Amy stood up. "Okay," she said. "I'm sorry to leave you with a screaming baby, Selina, but I have to go to the bathroom." She plunked a screaming Savannah in Selina's lap and zapped herself to the bathroom, returning quickly and taking Savannah back. "Sorry it took me so long," she said and got Savannah a bottle. "This should bring us silence for a little bit, shouldn't?"

While Savannah was being fed, Kol and Klaus happened by.

"We thought something up," Kol told Amy, looking immensely pleased with himself.

"You found a solution to our problem?" Amy asked. "What is it?"

"Well, it's not a long-term solution, but we could send her to Adrian and Helene's," Klaus replied. "He looks enough like me that she might be fooled."

"That's a good start," Amy sighed. "But I don't know if I feel all right with leaving her with Adrian and Helene if it doesn't work. How fair is that?"

"Can I suggest compelling her to forget it again?" Klaus asked. "It would really be the best solution."

"She's a baby for heaven's sake, Klaus!" Amy cried, looking horrified. "Hasn't she been through enough already without us adding to it by doing that?"

"Cause what she's going through now is probably a trust issue," Selina added. "Once you assure her that you'll be there for her, she'll probably get better."

"Thank you, Dr. Freud," Klaus replied dryly.

"You're welcome!" Selina shot back.

"All right," Amy said when the bottle was empty. "You wanna take a turn with her now?" She handed him Savannah. He looked down at the baby's innocent, smiling face and held her close before telling Amy, "You girls have fun. We should be back later!"

"All right," Amy called. "See you then!"

* * *

"So tell me again what's wrong with her?" Adrian asked his father.

Klaus sighed. "Your mother thinks she's having separation issues cause she was kidnapped by Hazel. They starved her because Enid wouldn't give Hazel that damn diamond."

"I heard that," Helene replied.

"Is there anything your mom _doesn't_ tell you?" Adrian asked her.

Helene shrugged. "She just wants to make sure I'm up on the magical news. Living here, I don't always get it."

"Now," Klaus replied. "I'm not absolutely certain this will work, keeping her with you, but I figure you look enough like me, Adrian, that it's worth a shot." He handed Adrian Savannah, and as she stared up at her brother, everyone waited for her response with baited breath. She seemed a little discomfited at first, but not enough that she started to cry.

"All right," Klaus replied. "Thanks for watching her."

"It's not a problem," Helene replied. "It's good practice for us."

"Oh, right," Klaus grinned at her. "And how are you feeling?"

"Good," Helene replied as she shoveled down chips and dip. "Had to spend the day in bed yesterday, but I felt fine this morning."

"Good," Klaus nodded. "It could be that you're having a boy this time."

"We thought about that," Adrian told him. "It's what we're rooting for. Oh, and you might want to call Roxie. She's had a bit of a shock about her kids."

"Really?" Klaus asked. "What kind of shock?"

"Well, apparently they're biologically Enid's kids," Helene replied. "Roxie was a surrogate in a sense for the kids Enid wanted to have with her boyfriend."

"So why didn't she just have them with her boyfriend then?" Klaus asked.

"Cause thanks to Hazel, she only gets to see her boyfriend for a week every five-hundred years," Helene replied. "That doesn't leave a lot of time for procreation. And then there's the worry that Hazel would have hurt her kids if they were all together, among other things, so..." She trailed off.

"All right," Klaus replied. "I'll give her a call."

"And if you don't catch her, it's cause she and Vince are on vacation," Adrian added. "Well, she's there now, it just depends on when you call her."

"Well, god," Klaus replied. "You leave for a couple of weeks and when you come back, everything is all messy." He left and went back home where he was greeted at the door by Amy, but something seemed off. "Are you all right?" He asked her as she ushered him inside.

"Have a seat," she told him with a wide grin. "Can I get you something? Paper? A drink?"

"Yeah," Klaus replied, still uneasy. "That would be nice."

She got him his drink and his paper, and after she'd left to go to the grocery store, _another_ Amy appeared. "Well," she said, "I see you're all comfy."

He spat out his drink at the sight of her and started coughing. "But you just left to go to the store!" He cried. "I saw you!"

"No, you saw my double," Amy replied. "I don't know why I didn't think of it sooner. I zapped up another version of me to watch Savannah when you and I want alone time. Isn't it brilliant?"

"And a little creepy," Klaus replied.

"You've murdered tons of people and it's two versions of _me_ running around that you find creepy?" Amy asked. "Interesting. So, did you drop Savannah off at Adrian and Helene's? How did that work out?"

"Good," Klaus replied. "We were all waiting for it to fail, but it worked out in the end."

"Wonderful," Amy replied. "Now, I'm gonna go take a soak and maybe after you have your drink and read your paper, you can join me."

At that, Klaus swallowed his drink in one gulp, put the paper down, and sped to the bathroom, turning the bath faucet on before Amy had even moved.

"Well, I guess the answer to that is 'Yes', then?" Amy said with a grin. She watched him strip, stripped herself, and when they were both in the tub, he began to slowly wash her off.

"I know this might sound bad," she said, "But Savannah's worn me out these last couple of weeks. Not that it's her fault of course, but it's exhausting to have someone need you every minute of the day."

"Not to mention that it's uncomfortable spending the night in a rocking chair multiple days in a row," Klaus agreed. "But I think this idea of yours will work. The only question I have is will I be able to tell one of you apart from the other?"

"Of course you will," Amy replied, leaning her head back to kiss him. "I'm the only one who will do _that." _She then snatched the wash cloth away, gently washing off more intimate places on Klaus' body before he took her in his arms and kissed her, her arms going up around his neck as the washcloth splashed in the bathwater. He then kissed her neck, and she gasped as the kiss was followed by a gentle nip, and she giggled at the feeling of his tongue gently lapping up the small amount of blood from her neck.

"Does that hurt?" He whispered

"No," Amy replied. "I'm fine. "It just tickles a little."


	17. The New Husband

"Please don't tell me Savannah gave you too much trouble last night," Amy told Helene after another night of Helene and Adrian babysitting her. "I was against Klaus bringing her to you so much because of how temperamental she's been lately."

"She was fine," Helene assured her friend. "Then again, it might have had something to do with the fact that she spent more time with Adrian than me cause I was in bed with a sore back."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Amy said sympathetically. "But it's good to hear Adrian seems to be getting used to the idea of having a baby around."

"Yeah," Helene nodded. "I'm pleased about that too. Based on our past history, we're really gonna have to try hard with this kid."

"Oh, it was only Felicity that you had trouble with," Amy said. "Things were all right with Lenora, right?"

"If you mean 'did we have time to establish a solid bond with her before everything was shot to hell', yes," Helene nodded. "Yes, we did. It was only after I got pregnant last time that things got bad. We don't talk about that anymore, though."

Amy nodded. "I understand," she said. "Good luck this time around."

"You too," Helene replied. "I hope Savannah gets better soon."

Amy nodded, took Savannah back and then left.

"Are they gone?" Adrian poked his head out and eyed Helene inquisitively.

"Yes, they're gone," Helene replied. "Why?"

"Well, you have to admit, with Savannah's problem and everything, there hasn't been a lot of time for you and me," Adrian pointed out. "We've been sacrificing _our_ alone time just so Amy and my dad can have theirs. What's the harm in making them watch their own kid sometimes?"

"I'm sorry," Helene apologized. "I've only offered to babysit Savannah so much because I thought it would help you get mentally prepared. But you're right; it's pushed our own relationship to the side a bit."

"Good," Adrian nodded. "Depending on how you're feeling, I can think of a variety of things for us to do to rectify that situation."

"I-I think I'd like to go buy shoes," Helene replied. "None of my fit."

"Why do you have to buy 'em?" Adrian asked. "I bet if you wanted to, you could zap yourself a whole closet of shoes!"

"But that would be dishonest!" Helene replied. "I think I should pay for them."

"Fine," Adrian sighed. "Whatever."

"Also, it's been a bit since I've seen my dad," Helene continued. "Why don't we go and visit him?"

"Do we have to?" Adrian asked. "I know he's gonna give me a look when we tell him that you're pregnant."

"Well, I'm sure once you explain to him that you're not gonna run off this time, he'll be happy for us," Helene replied. "Come on. I promise we won't stay very long."

"Fine," Adrian sighed. "But I'm holding you to that."

Helene rolled her eyes and led him out to the car, doing her best to ignore the grumpy faces Adrian kept making in the rearview mirror. When they reached Alistair and Astrid's, Helene put her key in the lock and opened the door. Once they were inside, however, Enid's father Conal appeared, his eyes narrowed. "Who are you?" he asked, his voice full of suspicion. "What are you doing here?"

"What do you _mean_ 'Who are you'?" Adrian asked him. "This is Helene, your daughter! Are you okay, Alistair?"

"Oh," Conal chuckled nervously as he realized how bad he was doing at being who he was supposed to be. "Helene, right. My daughter. How are you, my dear?"

"Not bad, considering the pregnancy and all," Helene sighed. "What about you, Daddy? You seem different somehow."

"I'm not different!" Conal replied in his best 'Alistair' voice. "What would make you think that? And how delightful that you're expecting a child!"

"Well, you don't usually appear in front of the door and proclaim that you don't know who I am when I come to visit," Helene pointed out. "Is this some side effect of missing Mom? I know she's been gone for awhile."

"I'm just tired," Conal replied, rubbing his eyes. "A little rest and I should be back to normal."

"All right," Helene replied. "Well, we'll let you do that then. We'll go."

"No, no!" Conal said quickly. "You don't have to. Please, stay."

"Are you sure?" Helene asked.

"Yes," Conal replied. "Come and sit with me, please." Helene and Adrian followed him into the living room, where they saw a blonde woman bound and gagged on the sofa. "Oh, my god!" Helene exclaimed, stopping so fast Adrian bumped into her. "Daddy, why do you have Hazel tied up in your living room? What are you thinking? Have you lost your mind?"

She quickly untied Hazel, who told her, "Thank you. And that's not your father, it's mine. He's punishing me. He's gonna take me back home, strip me of my powers, and condemn me to live in this wretched mortal body!"

Helene turned around to face Conal after that remark, laughing weakly. "Well, this is a fun development," she said. "Excuse me!" Leaving a shocked Adrian to deal with the two others, she sped off to call her mother.

"Mom?" She said when she got her mother's machine. "I know you're probably busy, but if you plan on coming home at any point soon, I thought you'd want to know that Dad's body has been taken over by Conal because of some issue with Hazel. Call me when you get this." She then put her phone away and turned around, starting when she saw Adrian was behind her. "Can we go?" He asked. "I'm bored."

"Yes," Helene replied. "But you really need to work on your attention span. It's getting to be as short as your father's."

"I have no idea what you mean," Adrian replied as they left the house. "I'm sure you're exaggerating."

* * *

"So..." Klaus said when he, Amy, and Savannah were gathering up fruit and vegetables at the grocery store."That double of yours, she's only for watching Savannah, right?" At the sound of her name, the little girl looked up, but then looked away as Amy pushed the cart toward the bananas.

"Yeah..." she replied, eyebrow going up. "What else would she be for?"

"Nothing," Klaus replied. "Never mind."

"All right," Amy replied. "I probably don't want to know anyway."

"You know, I haven't been in a grocery store in a long time," he said.

"Well, that's reasonable," Amy replied. "It's not like you need to go or anything."

"How many more things do we need to get?" Klaus asked, bouncing on the balls of his feet as he held the basket to put the food in. "Is it gonna be a long time?"

"Why are you fidgeting?" Amy asked. "Are you bored? You're the one who wanted to come with me. Savannah is handling this better than you!" Savannah smiled and giggled at that remark.

"I know," Klaus replied. "Just tell me how many more things we have to get."

"A few," Amy replied. "And if you don't complain about it, I'll give you a quarter for the gumball machine of the way out."

"Not good enough," Klaus replied. "I have much better ideas for when we get home."

"Fine," Amy replied. "As long as none of them include my double." She picked up the bananas, and then some broccoli and tomatoes, as well as a few steaks. "All right," she said. "I think we can check out now."

Klaus held out his hand. "What are you doing?" Amy asked.

"You told me I could have money for the gumball machine," Klaus replied. "So I want it."

Amy rolled her eyes and pulled a quarter out of her change purse. "Here," she said. "Knock yourself out."

"Thanks!" Klaus replied and strode off to the gumball machine while Amy ruffled Savannah's hair. "You're behaving so well!" She praised her daughter. "Much better than your daddy." She went to the checkout counter to pay for the groceries, and by the time they were all bagged up, Klaus had gotten his gumball and come back to join them. "Is it time for us to go now?" He asked, his voice distorted by the gum.

"Yes," Amy replied. "I've paid and we can go now."

They drove home and were getting the grocery bags out of the car when Jonathan appeared.

"Hey!" Klaus cried. "What are you doing here?"

"Apparently, my heroic rescue of your daughter made Astrid decide to let me lead my own life once and for all," he told Klaus.

"Well, that's wonderful!" Amy told him. "Do you need help finding an apartment?"

"Cause you're not staying with us again," Klaus added.

"Oh, no," Jonathan shook his head. "Of course not. I have no intention of abusing your hospitality again."

"Good," Klaus replied. "Amy, bring Savannah in, would you?"

"Why?" Amy replied. "I want to stay out here and talk for a bit."

"May I remind you that this man kidnapped you and messed with your mind?" Klaus asked her. "And Savannah's too? How could you forget that?"

"Well, when he helped _rescue_ her, that gave me a higher opinion of him," Amy pointed out. "Now just go unpack the groceries, would you?"

"Fine," Klaus replied, but showed Jonathan his teeth before he left.

"Sorry about him," Amy apologized once he was gone. "He's still a bit territorial of me."

"Well, based on my past behavior, I don't blame him," Jonathan replied. "I acted horribly."

"Yes, well, we all make mistakes," Amy replied. "You want to come in and look for apartment advertisements on the computer?"

"You can do that?" Jonathan asked, looking amazed.

"Yes," Amy nodded. "How were you planning on finding a place to live?"

Jonathan shrugged. "I had no idea, to be honest. I figured being with Margot was out of the question too."

"Yeah," Amy replied. "Kol might object to that after that not-so-little argument the two of you had."

"So, will you help me find a place to live?" Jonathan asked her. "Please?"

"Why don't you try talking to Astrid?" Amy asked.

"Because she said she wanted to go home and have a break for a bit," Jonathan explained. "And she didn't say when her break would be over. And I can't just not live anywhere until she gets back!"

Amy sighed. "I know," she said, then noticed Savannah was reaching for Jonathan and trying to squirm out of her grip. "Would you take her for a second?" Amy asked him. "I think I should go inside and prove to my husband that I haven't run off with you by now. In fact, why don't you just come in?"

"Well, thank you," Jonathan inclined his head. "I think I will." He followed her in and sat down on the sofa. Klaus heard this and stormed out. "What's _he_ doing, sitting on my sofa?"

"He doesn't have anywhere else to go at the moment," Amy told Klaus. "Can't he just stay here until Astrid is back from her break and can find a place for him?"

"If he stays, you and I are leaving," Klaus told Amy. "And Savannah too."

"You mean, you'd let me stay here at your house, all alone?" Jonathan asked him. "That's surprising."

"I don't care where you stay as long as it's not in the same location as me," Klaus replied tersely.

"So where will _we_ go?" Amy asked Klaus. "You can't make ridiculous decisions like this, especially if you don't have an alternative in mind."

"Of course I have an alternative in mind!" Klaus shot back. "What do you think I am, an idiot?"

"I won't dignify that with a response," Amy replied. "So, where are we going to be staying?"

"With my brother," Klaus said. "I'm sure he and your sister would be willing to give us a room."

"I thought you meant we were going to stay with Elijah and Selina for a minute there," Amy replied.

"No," Klaus sighed. "Not Elijah. I can do without the lectures in this situation. I'm getting them enough from you."

"And that doesn't tell you anything about how stupid you're being?" Amy asked.

"No," Klaus replied. "What it tells me is that between the two of us, I'm the kindest one. I'm actually giving Jonathan a place to stay, and you did nothing to help."

"It's not much help when we have to move ourselves because you're stubborn," Amy replied. But she got the bags anyway, and then she, Klaus, and Savannah headed to Kol and Margot's.

* * *

"Alistair?" Astrid called. "I'm home! For a whole week break this time. What do you say we make the most of it?" She'd gotten Helene's message, but she still didn't quite believe it. There was no response, however. She put her bags on the floor and continued into the house, finally finding Alistair, or Conal, or whoever he was reading the paper in the kitchen. "Why didn't you answer me?" She asked. "Didn't you hear me call?"

Conal put the paper down. "Magical news seems to be so trivial today," he told her. "There was a reason why I handed all management duties to my daughter, but now she's completely failed. I just don't know what I'm going to do for help once I take away Hazel's powers."

"Alistair?" Astrid frowned. "Are you all right?"

"I have to say that I've never felt better in my life," Alistair replied. "Your husband makes an exceptionally good vessel, my lady." He took her hand and kissed it.

"Who in the world...?" Astrid asked. "Helene was right, wasn't she?"

"Enid's father," he replied, nodding. "Conal. Due to some family trouble, I've had to borrow your husband. I do apologize for the inconvenience. I assume your daughter told you I was here."

"But-but-" Astrid's jaw dropped. "You-you're the most powerful being in existence!"

Conal chuckled. "This is true, but I don't like to brag. You have a lovely home."

"Thank you," Astrid replied. "Not to seem too put off by your presence or anything, cause this _is_ a real honor, but would you mind telling me when I'll be getting my husband back?"

"I don't know," Conal shrugged. "I'll be here until things with Hazel have been sorted out and I can't tell you how long that will take."

"All right," Astrid sighed. "I'll go make up a bed for you."

"Oh, right," Conal nodded. "Of course, thank you."

Astrid nodded. "You're welcome, sir."


	18. Good News and Bad News

"Good morning," Conal told Astrid. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yes, sir," Astrid nodded. "Would you like some orange juice? I would be more than happy to get it for you."

"Oh, don't be ridiculous," Conal replied. "You act as if I expect you to be a servant in your own house and that isn't true! A lovely woman like you shouldn't have to wait on people. You should have them waiting on _you_." He moved his hand and to Astrid's surprise, Hazel came stomping out. "What can I do for you?" She asked in a monotone.

"Remember how I told you to smile?" Conal asked his daughter.

Hazel grinned and repeated the question through her teeth.

"There's nothing I need that I can't get myself," Astrid told her, feeling very disconcerted. "But-but thank you for asking anyway. I don't want to be a bother."

"Oh, it's no bother," Conal said firmly. "She'd be happy to do it. Come on," he said encouragingly. "Ask for anything."

"All right," Astrid said when it was clear he wouldn't give up. "Coffee and pancakes...blueberry flavored pancakes." Then, to her surprise, the second most powerful person in the magical world zapped pancakes on her plate before stalking off with a muttered, "tell me if you need anything else."

"All right," Astrid nodded, feeling embarrassed. "I will."

Then Hazel left and she was alone in the living room with Conal, who smiled pleasantly at her. "Well, this is nice," he said. "Isn't it?"

"Yeah," Astrid nodded. "Sure." Because he was watching, she poked at her pancakes with her fork and choked them down. Eventually, she pushed away a plate that was still half-full. "I can't eat any more," she replied. "I'm stuffed."

"All right," Conal nodded. "What do you suggest we do now?"

"You-you want to do something with me?" Astrid asked in surprise.

"Yes," Conal nodded. "Of course."

"All right," Astrid replied, still unable to believe it. "But before we do anything, can I ask when I'll next see my husband? Things with Hazel seem in hand."

"I haven't been to earth in _years_," Conal told her. "I haven't had reason to. But now, now I think I have reason to stick around for awhile."

"Well, if, when you say that, you mean me," Astrid replied, "I'm afraid you won't get what you ask for. I'm happily married and I have no intention of marrying anyone else."

Conal chuckled at this. "You think I want marriage?" He asked. "No, I've never been married. Never really had use for it. My daughters had different mothers and I wasn't married to either of them."

"Oh, so you want me to be some sort of booty call," Astrid scoffed. "This might surprise you, but that doesn't really make me feel like being more receptive to the idea."

"If it's because you're afraid your husband will find out, don't worry, he won't," Conal assured her. "After I've left his body, he'll just remember the last thing he was aware of before I possessed him. He won't know about anything you and I did. Does that ease your mind any?"

"I-I-" She paused. "Let me think about it," she said.

He chuckled. "I like the thrill of the chase," he said. "Every woman worth my time never gives in to me right away. Eventually they do. But not immediatley."

"I-I need to go visit somebody," she got out. "But I'll be back soon, I promise."

"All right," Conal replied, removing his shirt. "I'll be waiting for you."

* * *

"Grandma?" Lenora asked as Astrid appeared suddenly. "Are you okay? You don't usually come without calling!"

"I-I'm in a terrible situation," Astrid told Lenora. "Conal is interested in me."

"Conal?" Lenora's eyebrow rose. "Like, the most powerful being in existence is interested in you? You told him about Grandpa, right?"

"Well, of course," Astrid nodded. "But he's possessed your grandfather. He said it was just until he took care of things with Hazel, but now he has, and in spite of that, has no intention of leaving cause he wants to pursue me."

"And what did you say?" Lenora asked.

"You should know what I said!" Astrid replied. "I told him that I had no interest in entering into a relationship with him!"

"But he's the most powerful being in the world," Lenora pointed out. "Can you _really_ afford to say 'no' to him?"

Astrid sighed. "And he promised me that your grandfather wouldn't know anything about what we did once he was back to normal, but it still feels wrong. So what should I do?"

"Well, my first instinct would be to say 'humor him', but I know you won't go for that," Lenora replied. "What do you _want_ me to say?"

"I don't know!" Astrid shrugged. Just then, James came in. "What are you ladies talking about?" He asked, putting his arms around Lenora.

"Hazel's dad has the hots for my grandmother," Lenora told him. "And she wants to let him down easy."

"I wish you the best of luck with that," James told her. "Let me know what you come up with."

"Can't you do something?" Astrid asked. "You know, like hold Conal in jail until he agrees to leave me alone?"

"No," James replied. "I honestly think that if he doesn't get his way in Alistair's body, he'll just try someone else until you give in. I think you know what you have to do, Astrid. I'm sure that once you explain the situation to Alistair, he'll understand."

"Conal promised me that Alistair wouldn't know anything about what he and I did once Conal was gone from his body, but it still feels so wrong!" Astrid replied. "The whole time we've been together, Alistair and I haven't lied to each other once! Who'd have thought I'd be the one to betray our entire relationship?"

"Well, like I said, it doesn't seem like you have a choice," James replied. "You know I wouldn't suggest you do this if you had any other options."

"And I wouldn't either," Lenora added.

Astrid sighed. "All right," she said. "Thanks for trying anyway." She went back home where Conal was still standing shirtless and flexing in the kitchen, a sight so unusual coming from Alistair that it wasn't hard for her to remember that the man who looked like her husband was someone else.

"I'm back," she said quietly.

"Good!" Conal replied, a grin on his face. "So tell me," he said. "Do you want me to make love to you in your bed or mine?"

* * *

"Amy!" Margot replied when she opened the door. "What brings you here?"

"Can we come in?" Amy asked. "Klaus got us all kicked out of our house and was counting on your and Kol's hospitality."

"What do you _mean_ by saying you were kicked out of your own house?" Kol smirked. "What have you done, brother?"

"I just...Jonathan needed a place to stay until he could talk to Astrid, and that'll be awhile, so I said he could stay at our house, but not while we were there." Klaus shrugged. "Anything to make him go away."

"Well, that makes an awful lot of sense," Kol rolled his eyes at Klaus. "Way to take a stand, brother."

"Well, someone has to," Klaus replied. "I wonder what could possibly be so important to Astrid that she would take so long before she could talk to Jonathan."

"Maybe she just wanted to see her husband," Margot suggested. "Work at the council keeps her busy, you know."

"So, can we stay?" Amy asked. "Please?"

"All right," Margot replied, cuddling Savannah. "Kol invited himself to live here, why don't you, as long as we have the space?"

"Don't kid yourself," Kol told Margot. "You _love _me living here, darling. Admit it."

"Well," Margot sighed. "I suppose it's nice to have someone around to open jars and move furniture."

"And scratch your itch every night, darling," Kol added. "Don't forget that."

"I think that goes without saying," Margot replied through her teeth. "Which means you _didn't_ need to say it!"

Kol smirked. "Sorry."

"No, you aren't!" Margot replied, and then looked at her sister. "What do you say we find you rooms now?" She asked. "No sense just standing out here when there's that to be done."

"Remember Savannah's issue with being alone," Amy reminded her sister. "So we'll have to share a room with her."

"Isn't there some way you could fix that?" Margot asked. "You can't let this go on forever!"

"I know," Amy replied. "I get that. But I-I just don't know how to make it better."

"Oh, I'm sure you'll find a way to fix things," Margot said. "You have to, for both your sanities."

"It's not like we're watching her every second," Amy replied. "I made a double."

"I still think that's more of a temporary solution," Margot replied. "She can't be watched all her life."

"It won't be all her life," Amy replied. "Just until she's recovered from what Hazel did. I mean, Klaus was saying that we should compel her to forget it, but I think that's wrong."

"And I don't understand why," Klaus said. "It's not gonna harm her in any way. I think it will help her. But if you want to spend the rest of our married life having sex be difficult because Savannah's always around, be my guest."

"No, I don't want that either," Amy replied as Margot showed them their room and Amy zapped up a crib for Savannah. She knew he was right, but she just couldn't bring herself to let him do what he suggested. It didn't seem right to her at all.

* * *

The Savannah issue was solved a few days later when Lenora came by Kol and Margot's while Klaus and Kol were out, so Susanna could play with Savannah.

"Why did she cry like that?" Susanna asked Amy after Amy's solo trip to the kitchen had caused Savannah to burst into tears.

"She's been nervous lately because she got kidnapped," Amy replied. "Bad men did mean stuff to her and it made her scared to be left alone."

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Susanna said to Savannah and kissed the baby's forehead. "Everything will be okay. No bad people hurt you ever. You're safe."

After that was said, Savannah stopped crying, looked at Susanna, and started giggling.

"Well, that's new," Amy replied.

"I think Susanna inadvertently compelled Savannah to forget her troubles," Lenora said. "I'm sorry."

"Oh, no, don't be sorry!" Amy replied. "I think it's great!"

"But you just said-" Lenora began.

"I know what I said," Amy replied. "And what I _meant_ was that it would be irresponsible for us as Savannah's parents to mess with her mind that way. But if, by chance, Susanna were to do it like she just did, well there's nothing that can be done about it, is there?" She shrugged. "And besides, look at how happy Savannah is!"

"Look, Mommy!" Susanna smiled at Lenora. "I made her happy!"

"You sure did!" Lenora replied. Just then, Klaus and Kol came back. "Well, look at that," Klaus commented when he saw Susanna and Savannah. "Finally, she's in a good mood! How did that happen?"

"I'll tell you later," Amy replied. "I promise."

And she did, before they went to bed that night. His reaction was what she expected.

"So it's okay for _Susanna_ to wipe Savannah's memory of what happened to her, but when I suggest it, you think I'm horrible!" Klaus scoffed. "Amy, you make no sense sometimes."

"Yes, I do!" Amy insisted. "As Savannah's parents, we have to be responsible, and wiping Savannah's memory is not something that one should do when one is a parent."

"So tell me again why it's okay for Susanna to do it and not me?" Klaus pressed. "Because Susanna is not Savannah's parent? But you _let_ Susanna do the mind-wiping and you're her mother!"

"Okay, okay," Amy sighed. "I'm sorry. I should have let you do it. It's just that...it seemed so cruel!"

"And it would have been if there'd been other ways to deal with what Savannah was going through, but I don't think there was. You made a choice and it ended up working out for the better," Klaus told Amy, taking her in his arms. "I'm proud of you. And a little miffed. But mostly proud." He got out of bed and looked at the crib Amy had zapped up for Savannah, pleased to discover it had wheels on it.

"All right," he told Savannah, after he'd wheeled her into the empty room next door to theirs. "Be a good girl and go to sleep now. Your mother and I will see you in the morning." He rubbed Savannah's tummy until she fell asleep and then went back to Amy.

"I put her next door," he said. "I hope that won't be a problem."

"No," Amy replied, zapping the door as Klaus stripped down to his boxers and came to sit next to her. "Now everything will be fine."

"What did you just do?" Klaus asked.

"I put a spell on the door so that we can hear Savannah cry, but she won't hear any noise we make and neither will anyone else."

"Good idea," Klaus replied, taking her in his arms and giving her a kiss as his hand went up her thigh. "That's something everyone in this house will be really grateful for."

"Oh, really?" Amy grinned. "Care to give me a demonstration?" She then giggled as she felt his hand slip into her panties and give her a good rub. Then she burst out laughing. "That tickles!" She cried. "That tickles, that tickles, that-" She broke off as he kissed her and pushed her back against the bed, sliding her panties off before he pushed into her. "Good," she moaned. "Really, _really _good!" They kissed a couple more times and he grinned. "I know," he told her, his wicked look sending warmth and tingles throughout her body. She nibbled on his ear and then stroked him. "I love you," she whispered as she moved herself on top and kissed up his chest.

"You're an unbelievable woman, Amy," Klaus whispered. "And I love you too." Then she let out a giggle as he flipped her under him and pushed into her again, her fingers running through his sweaty hair while he nipped her neck and licked the blood off. Then, suddenly they looked up and realized the power had gone out.

"What the hell?" Amy said as she looked around and zapped up some candles. "I don't understand! It's not even stormy out."

"I think you did that, love," Klaus smirked. "Nice to see evidence of how good I am in bed."

Just then, there was a knock on the door and Margot and Kol came running in. "We were, you know, doing...stuff, and all of a sudden, the power went out!" Margot replied.

"So you were having sex too?" Amy asked. "No wonder the power went out!"

"Of course we were having sex too!" Margot replied. "What do you think we are, a couple on a fifties sitcom?"

"I don't see what the problem is," Kol said. "It's much more interesting to do it in the dark."

"You _would_ say that," Margot replied dryly and then let out a yell as Kol picked her up and patted her bottom. "We're gonna go back to our room now," he said. "Sorry for disturbing you." He left with Margot slung over his shoulder, her pounding on his back with her fists and yelling for him to 'Let go of me, you idiot!' When they reached their room again, he put her down. "There," he said, his teeth shining white in the darkness. "Are you happy?"

"Fine, I guess," Margot shrugged, although Kol couldn't see it. She eased off the robe she'd been wearing and pushed Kol to the floor. He let out a yell, being momentarily stunned before he got his arms around Margot's neck, kissing her deeply as they rolled around on the floor, knocking over a table. "Oops," Kol replied, pulling himself away from Margot for a moment.

"Never mind," Margot told him. "We'll fix it later."

Kol chuckled. "I like the sound of that," he replied, his hands moving down her back and giving her bottom a firm squeeze. Margot moaned and ran her fingers through his hair. "I like doing it in the dark," she said. "Amy and I should blow out the power more often."

"I agree," Kol replied. "Whole-heartedly."


	19. Astrid's Choice

Astrid went out so she could have some peace and quiet while she pondered what to do about Conal. The most obvious solution would be to try and let him down easy, cause there was no way she'd give him what he wanted. She and Alistair were in a committed, solid relationship, but on the other hand, she knew that if she _didn't_ give Conal what he wanted, she and Alistair would most likely be killed. She sighed and went into a coffee shop nearby, ordering the biggest, blackest coffee they had, following it up with going to the park and staring at all the happy people who didn't have a care in the world. Finally, it began to get dark and she decided to face the music and head home.

When she arrived and got inside, shutting the door behind her, she found a vase of roses on the hall table. They were beautiful, but she avoided them on principle because she knew they were a bribe. Finally, though, she couldn't stop herself and went to sniff one. And that was when Conal saw her.

"So you like those," he said. "I wondered if you would. I've been waiting all day to show them to you."

"Sorry," she replied. "I had work to do that required me to be out all day. You understand that, right?"

"No, I don't," Conal replied. "Where do you work?"

"I'm the head of the council," Astrid replied. "I'm surprised you didn't know that."

Conal was silent for a few seconds and then called Hazel to him again. "You know where the Council building is, don't you?" He asked her.

"Of course I do," Hazel replied. "What about it?"

"I want you to go down there and tell them that my Astrid won't be working for them anymore," Conal instructed. "It's a very simple task. Can you do it?"

"Of course," Hazel nodded. "I'll go and do that now."

"Delightful!" Conal replied, and Astrid was struck by how creepy it was to hear his words come out of Alistair's mouth.

"How can you make it so I lose my job?" Astrid asked when Hazel had left. "It's very important to me!"

"But why would you need a job when I can make life very comfortable for you here?" Conal asked. "I can give you things that you'd never even imagine."

"What about my husband?" Astrid asked. "Anything you offer me, I'll refuse, except him."

"Well, I'm sorry to say that's not an option," Conal replied irritably. "But anything other than him, I'll give you."

"Tell me something," Astrid said, looking him square in the eye. "If I refuse you, if I _don't_ do as you ask, will you kill me?"

"No, of course not," Conal replied, and she let out her breath in relief. But that was short lived. "I'll kill your husband instead. I can always find another vessel. It's no trouble."

"What makes you think that you killing my husband will make me acquiese to you?" Astrid asked.

"I know it won't," Conal replied. "I know it will make you even more belligerent than you're being right now. I don't want to hurt you. I want this to go smoothly. Trust me, dear. It'll be easier for everyone if you just let me love you. You'll gain nothing by being difficult."

Astrid sighed and thought over her choices in her mind. Between death and living, it seemed like there was really only _one_ choice, no matter how much it hurt her to make it.

"All right," she said, and took a deep breath. "I give in. I'll be with you. But you have to _swear_ that what you said before about my husband not knowing anything about us is true, and not just some nonsense to get me into bed."

"It's true," Conal replied. "If Alistair ever hears about our evenings of passion from anyone, it won't be me." He held out his hand to take hers. "Shall we?"

Astrid nodded and let him lead her to his room, shutting her eyes and telling herself that the way to get through this was to pretend she was making love to Alistair, even though when she looked into the dark eyes and felt the hands that touched her body, they definitely weren't Alistair's. They were someone else's that she wasn't familiar with at all.

* * *

After Conal finally tired himself out and fell asleep beside her, Astrid lay awake, thinking over and over again of the implications of what she'd done. She'd had her reasons, and even if what she'd done could be considered cheating, Alistair would be alive when Conal left his body because of it. She had nothing to be ashamed of, and whatever the consequences from her husband were, she could face them.

All of a sudden, Conal let out a groan, turned to face her, and his eyes opened. "Astrid," he said, looking at her in amazement. "How-how are you?"

Astrid's eyes widened when she suddenly realized that the man beside her didn't seem to be Conal at that moment. "Alistair," she whispered, not daring to hope. "Is it you?"

"Yes, it's me, dear," he said. "Are you all right?"

"Yes, I'm fine," Astrid nodded. "I love you," she said quickly, realizing that the longer Alistair was Alistair, the more likely she'd have to explain her current predicament. Thank god the room was dark. "Go to sleep. I'll see you in the morning."

"All right," Alistair nodded and kissed her before dozing off. "Goodnight, dear."

* * *

The next morning, Astrid left the house before Conal woke up and headed off to Helene and Adrian's.

"Sorry to come so early," she apologized to her daughter, who looked half asleep and was clad in a bathrobe. "I wouldn't do it if it wasn't an emergency."

"All right," Helene nodded. "Come on in." They both sat down at the kitchen table and Helene offered her mother some coffee. "It's decaf," she explained. "It basically does me no good, but it's not like I can have any of the real stuff at this point." When Astrid refused the offer, Helene sat back down again. "So," she said. "What brings you here so early in the morning?"

Astrid sighed. "I know you don't like to hear things like what I'm about to tell you, but...Conal told me that if I didn't sleep with him, he'd kill your father, so I-I did."

Helene's jaw dropped. "What? Oh, my god!"

Astrid nodded. "I know it's disappointing and awful, and that if your father ever comes back to himself and finds out what I did then I'm in _big_ trouble, but I don't know what other choice I had."

"Yeah, you were kind of in a bad place," Helene agreed. "Is there any way Dad will find out about this?"

"Conal says he won't," Astrid replied. "Not unless I tell him, anyway, which, knowing my propensity for honesty, I probably will, despite steely resolve not to."

"It'll be all right, no matter what happens," Helene encouraged. "I think even if something _does_ go wrong and Daddy gets upset with you, it won't last forever. He loves you too much."

"And I love him," Astrid replied. "I have for a long time. That's why this whole situation is so hard."

Just then, Adrian came in to join them. "Are you all right?" He asked Helene drowsily without noticing Astrid.

"I'm fine," Helene assured him. "You go back to bed now. I know how you don't like being woken up too early and I'm touched you got up just to check on me. Mom just came to visit, that's all." At that, Adrian turned and gave his mother in law a sleepy wave before plodding back to bed. "He can be really sweet when he wants to be," Helene said fondly."And I'm really sorry about this situation with Daddy and Conal."

"It's nothing you did. You don't have to be sorry," Astrid sighed. "But it might have cost me my job at the Council too. He sent Hazel over to tell everyone that I quit so I could be his mistress. Where's that gonna leave me once he's gone?"

"Maybe you losing your job at the Council is a good thing," Helene replied. "It'll free up a lot of your time for, you know, hobbies and stuff."

"I would say that it would give me more time to spend with your father, but that won't be there," Astrid sighed. "I guess all I can do now is just wait and see what happens, right?"

"Yes," Helene nodded and put a hand on her mother's arm. "It'll be okay," she repeated again. "I promise. And if you want anything from Adrian or me, just ask."

"You're sweet," Astrid told her daughter. "But I don't want to take too much from you cause of the baby and everything."

"Don't worry," Helene chuckled. "This is my third one. It's not like I'm a newbie at the whole pregnancy process."

"Good point," Astrid replied with a weak chuckle that was primarily for Helene's benefit. Then she stood up. "I should probably get back to the house now before Conal figures out where I went and comes to remove me by force. Goodbye, sweetheart."

"Goodbye, Mom," Helene replied. "Good luck!"

* * *

After several days of blissful peace and quiet, Klaus was dismayed when the phone rang and the bane of his existence was on the other end of the line. "Klaus?" Jonathan shouted into the phone. "Klaus, is that you?"

"Yes," Klaus said through his teeth. "It's me. What do you want? And why are you shouting?"

"I just...I wondered if I could talk to Amy," Jonathan replied. "Is she there? I want to see if she and Savannah are all right."

"They're fine," Klaus replied. "Goodbye." He was about to hang up when Amy came wandering in. "Who's on the phone?" She asked.

"Jonathan," Klaus sighed. "How the hell did he even get this number?"

"I gave it to him in case he had concerns he needed to talk to me about," Amy replied, taking it from him. "Either he talks to me about problems, or we come back to a house out of whack, and I know how you don't want that." She took the phone and put it to her ear. "Jonathan, hi! Sorry to keep you waiting. "Yes, Savannah and I are fine, thanks for asking. And what about you? Everything going well at our house? Good. All right, Jonathan. Goodbye." She gave the phone back to her pissed off husband and said, "Nice to see things are working out for him."

"How long do you expect me to let him stay in our house?" Klaus asked her. "I'll give him a week more, and if he hasn't found a place to live by then, I don't care what happens to him!"

"You never did!" Amy replied.

"Now please tell me again why we have an obligation to take care of him," Klaus requested.

"Because he needs help and we're good people," Amy replied. "That's why."

"But I'm _not_ a good person," Klaus corrected her. "At least not to every idiot that shows up on my doorstep."

"Well, in that case," Amy replied, "I'm helping you learn by example."

Klaus rolled his eyes and scoffed at that remark. "To stop myself from thinking about your ex-fiance wreaking havoc on my perfectly arranged house, I'm gonna go see Savannah. She always has a calming effect on me. You did once too, but lately, that's not been the case."

"Oh, well, I'm sorry," Amy replied. "I wasn't aware it was my job to make you happy every second of the day."

"Well, we're married!" Klaus replied. "It's in the job description."

"No, it's not," Amy replied. "Now go see Savannah before those veins in your neck pop out any farther."

"You bet I will," Klaus replied, baring his teeth at his wife." He went into Savannah's room where his rapidly growing daughter sat up in her crib as if waiting for him. He picked her up and said, "Your mother is driving me crazy," he said. "Are you gonna do that?"

She just found the spot between his neck and his shoulder that she liked and put her face there. He then took her back to the living room and found that Margot had joined her sister in front of the TV.

"I hear Jonathan called," she said as he came and sat down, holding Savannah in his lap. "How was that conversation?"

As Klaus scowled, Amy said, "Don't tease him, Margot. He's being difficult enough about it as it is without you encouraging him."

"_How_ am I being difficult?" Klaus asked, quietly, so he wouldn't scare Savannah. "You seem to have this overwhelming urge to help your ex-fiance with everything even though he shouldn't be your concern anymore."

"Now if I were having some sort of affair with him, then you'd have the right to be concerned, but I'm not," Amy replied. "I might help Jonathan out, but every night, I come to _your_ bed. No matter _how_ difficult you're being."

Klaus couldn't think of a way to respond to that very good point, so he was relieved when Kol came in and broke the tension.

"What sort of conversation am I missing?" He asked.

"Amy is accusing me of being unreasonable," Klaus replied.

"Well, to escape that, would you like to go out?" Kol asked him. "Get a good kill in?"

"_Yes_," Klaus replied and plunked Savannah down in Margot's lap. "You pick the place."

"All right," Kol grinned. "Smart decision, brother." He then gave Margot a quick kiss before following Klaus out to the car. "I saw that, what you did to Margot," he said. "Could it be that you're beginning to actually have feelings for her?"

Kol scoffed. "What feelings? I don't have feelings. She's a pretty thing, that's all."

"Yes," Klaus nodded, smirking as he got in the car. "Right. Whatever you say, Kol."

"Just drive," Kol requested of his brother. "Or we could work through this right here. Although I don't think the girls would be too happy about that."

Instead of continuing to bait his brother, Klaus started the car and the two of them drove off in search of a wild night, even though they knew they'd hate themselves for it in the morning.


	20. Under New Management

"Well, look who's back?" Conal said as Astrid came through the door.

"What?" She asked. "Am I not allowed to leave unless you give me permission to do so?"

"Where were you?" Conal asked. "Where did you go?"

"I just went to visit my daughter," Astrid replied. "Is that a problem?"

"Why did you feel the need to visit her so early in the morning?" Conal pressed.

"Because you were asleep and I thought if I made my visits while you were asleep, I'd have more time to experience your charming company," Astrid replied. "Is that a good enough answer for you?"

Conal just gave her a look and stomped off. Once he was gone, she let out a breath and told herself to remember that no matter how impossible Conal got, Alistair was still in there somewhere. She'd seen him once. She just had to figure out how to bring him out again.

* * *

She thought that that task would be easier since she no longer had a job at the Council to worry about, but instead, it just meant that she had nothing else to occupy her mind. And other people weren't helping.

"What do you _mean_ you're not head of the Council anymore?" James asked when Astrid went and broke the news to him. "The whole reason why I got the job change was because of you. What if they send me back to that hell I lived in before?"

"I thought the prospect would make you happy," Lenora told him. "You're always complaining about how lame life has been since peple have stopped fearing you and you don't get to kill people anymore."

"I know!" James replied. "But now that there's a possibility things might change, I'm having second thoughts! Growing up in that environment made Henry tough, but what do you think it will do to Susanna? It could ruin her, being surrounded by all that darkness and negativity."

"You've been calling her 'Monster' for years," Lenora reminded him. "I think she'll be fine. _If_ there's anything to worry about. And there might not be."

"Of course there will!" James replied. "Astrid's the only one who holds me in any sort of esteem. Anyone else will send me right back where I came from." He looked at Astrid. "Don't you think?"

She shrugged. "I haven't given that very much thought, James. I'm sorry."

"Don't feel bad," Lenora told her. "We know you have your own problems to deal with. Did you tell Mom about the Conal thing? I wanted to, but I thought it would be better coming from you."

Astrid sighed. "She took it much better than I thought she would. Said that not having a job would give me more time for hobbies. And I did-I did give into Conal in the end," she confessed. "I didn't see what other choice I had. That wasn't the toughest part, though. The toughest part was that after it was all over, he fell asleep and that's when I found out your grandfather is still in him somewhere."

"What?" Lenora asked in surprise. "Really?"

"Yeah," Astrid replied. "Thank heavens it was dark so I didn't have to explain anything to him about what went on between Conal and me, but I know I'll have to some day. I'm not looking forward to that conversation."

"You'll get through it, Grandma," Lenora said, just as Helene had before her. "Grandpa loves you too much to stay away for long."

"I hope so," Astrid replied with a sigh. "All of this is so wearing on me, and now, since I don't have a job, there's no way to distract myself."

"Could I suggest a way?" Lenora asked as Henry and Susanna came in with Rusty trotting at their heels. "It won't last forever, but it will at least give you a few hours' peace and quiet. How about you take Henry and Susanna out for some fresh air? And Susanna needs to practice her magic anyway."

"Grandma help me with magic?" Susanna jumped up and down. "Yay!"

"Yeah," Lenora nodded. "I think poor Rusty will be glad for the break." It was then that Astrid noticed the dog was purple and had two heads. "Good heavens!" She exclaimed. "Susanna, I think you should turn that poor dog back before we leave."

"All right," Susanna nodded and turned him back. She tried to pet him, but he snapped at her and then skulked away. Susanna pouted and Henry said, "I _told_ you giving him that extra head was a bad idea!"

"I thought it would make him smarter!" Susanna shot back.

"Okay, okay," Lenora said, breaking up the argument. "Why don't you go put your jackets on?"

They went and got their jackets and Lenora said to Astrid, "are you going to be all right?"

"Yes," Astrid sighed. "Maybe not right away, but eventually."

* * *

They went to the park and while Astrid was teaching Susanna how to control her magic, she got a phone call. "Yes?" She answered it, thinking it was Conal. But it wasn't. It was someone who was, in a sense, worse.

"Astrid Fale?" She said chirpily into the phone.

"What?" Astrid replied, her voice sharp.

"It's me, Cordelia Payne. Remember, we went to school together."

"Yes, I remember," Astrid sighed. "What is it you want, Cordelia?"

"I just wanted to let you know that I've been given your job as head of the Council."

"Well, that was quick," Astrid said to her old school rival. "They didn't even give me time to clean out my desk!"

"That's what I was calling about," Cordelia said. "Do you _want_ to come clean out your desk, or do you want me to do you a favor and just get rid of it all? Cause as the mistress of the most powerful man in the world, what more do you really need?"

"I'm with my grandchildren right now," Astrid replied. "I'll come and clean out my desk later. Don't touch a thing!"

"Fine," Cordelia replied. "Won't this be a fun thing to talk about at the next school reunion?"

"Sure," Astrid replied. "I'm sure we'll all relish hearing who you slept with to get _this_ job."

At that remark, Cordelia huffed, ended the call, and then Astrid put the phone back in her purse and went to help Henry put out a fire Susanna had started on her shirt with her magic that was in danger of getting bigger by the minute. When they got home, she'd definitely have to thank Lenora for this little diversion. It got her troubles out of her mind, that's for sure.

* * *

"Thank you for helping me find a place to live," Jonathan told Amy as they stood outside his small but neat new house. Although she wasn't proud of it, she'd done some sneaky magic to get it for him, but she comforted herself that it was for a good cause, and thus, okay.

It was a small brick structure with windows on either side of the front door and a sloping roof. "I know it's not a big place..." she began.

"It's fine!" Jonathan said quickly. "Definitely enough space for an old bachelor like myself, especially when I have company over!" He then took Savannah from Amy's arms and they went inside. The inside was just like the outside, very tidy, and full to the brim with antiques. "How quaint." Jonathan grinned. "It looks just like my parents' house did when..." He looked at Amy. "When you and I were together."

"I'm sorry," Amy sighed. "If you want to change things, feel free. I just thought-"

"No!" Jonathan said quickly. "No, I love it. Thank you, Amy."

"All right," Amy replied. "I have to go and check on Klaus again because you know how he feels when I'm with you for long periods of time."

"I *do* know," Jonathan nodded. "I'm not a fool. Will you be taking Savannah with you?"

"If you'd like me to," Amy said. "Or, if you wanted, she could stay here for awhile."

it was then that Savannah cuddled against Jonathan and peered at her mother as if daring Amy to move her. "Looks like she wants to stay," Amy replied. "I'll be back after an hour or so to check on you. Or you can just call me when you'd like to have time for yourself."

"I'll let you know," Jonathan replied. "Goodbye, Amy."

"Goodbye, Jonathan," Amy replied. "And thank you."

"You're welcome," Jonathan replied, than took Savannah's arm and made a waving motion at Amy, and she smiled to herself as she shut the door behind her.

* * *

"So, what did Jonathan think of his new house?" Klaus asked when Amy returned home. "Did he like it so much that we'll never have to see him again?"

"He liked it," Amy replied. "And I left Savannah with him for a bit."

"Why?" Klaus asked angrily. "Why do you always have to leave her with him? It's like you've forgotten who her real father is!"

"Oh, I haven't forgotten," Amy replied. "You're very hard to forget. I just thought we could use some time alone after this whole 'Jonathan not having a place to live' thing, but if you don't want that, okay. I'll just go get Savannah and-"

"Wait!" Klaus cried.

"What?" Amy had been making her way back toward the door and when she heard his exclaimation, she halted and turned, a grin on her face.

"I-I didn't mean I wanted you to _leave_!" Klaus replied. "Stay with me. Please."

"Oh, all right," Amy grinned and walked right into his waiting arms. "I guess I can do that." She kissed him and then let him carry her off to bed, where she used her magic to dim the lights while Klaus undressed, giggling at the funny little dance he did. Then, she lay back on the mattress, shutting her eyes as he undressed her and felt his warm fingers caress her bare skin. She smiled and let out a pleased sigh. Then, he kissed her and she opened her eyes. "Hi, there," she whispered. Then she sat up, threw her arms around his neck, and kissed him repeatedly, not even pausing for breath. Then, when she had no _choice _ but to pull away and breathe, he moved downward from her lips to her neck. Panting, she held on to him, her fingers threading through his hair. Then, he pushed into her, she let out a shriek, let him go, and fell backwards onto the mattress, feeling warmth and a kind of electricity surge through her body. "Are you all right?" Klaus asked, lying beside her and stroking her bare stomach.

"Yes," Amy nodded. "I'm fine." She kissed him again. "I love you," she said.

Klaus chuckled and took her in his arms again. "You said Savannah was with Jonathan?"

"Yeah," Amy nodded. "But I can pick her up at any time."

"Oh, there's no rush," Klaus assured her. "I kind of want to stay like this for awhile. If it's all right with you."

"Of course," Amy nodded. "You won't catch me complaining." They were still busy with each other when Jonathan called. He called once, then twice, and after the third time, brought Savannah home, using magic to let himself in. He put Savannah in her play pen and watched her until finally, Amy came into the living room wearing a fuzzy pastel purple bathrobe. "Jonathan!" She exclaimed. "You didn't have to bring her over here! You could've called!"

"I did," Jonathan replied dryly. "Three times. Were you busy?"

"Yeah," Amy flushed. "Kind of. I'm sorry. Thanks for watching her."

"You're welcome," Jonathan said. "It was less a chore and more a pleasure, but I'm sure she's ready to be with her mother and father now." He leaned down and kissed Savannah's head. She looked up at him as he said, "goodbye, little Savannah. I hope you come and visit me again soon." Then he said goodbye to Amy and headed back to his house where, after locking the door behind him, he paced around the house whistling to himself, then turned on the small radio just so it would seem like there was another person in the house. He hated being alone. Even in prison he'd had a cell mate. The ringing of the doorbell broke into his thoughts. He went to answer it and saw a young-looking woman with dark hair and dark eyes on the other side. "Yes?"

"Hi," she said, shaking his hand. "I'm Cordelia Payne, the new head of the Council."

"I've been pardoned," Jonathan said quickly. "You can't take me back to jail!"

"Oh, I know that!" Cordelia replied. "I just wanted to let you and some of the other more infamous ex-prisoners know about the change in management and assure you that I don't mean to cause you any problems."

"Oh," Jonathan nodded. "Well, thank you." She looked him over and scribbled a number on a piece of paper, putting it in his palm. "You seem very well situated here, but if you ever have any concerns at all, don't hesitate to call me."

"Thank you," Jonathan said. She nodded, waved goodbye, and he closed the door behind him. He looked at the number and threw it away. He wasn't a fool. He knew perfectly well she hadn't just come over to assure him all was well, or if she had, seeing him had put other ideas in her mind. He knew in his heart of hearts that with his infamous status, it would be good to have a friend in high places, but he couldn't give that woman what she wanted. It wasn't right. He stepped away from the door and sat on the sofa. There were two females in his life, and they both had red hair and blue eyes. And that Cordelia, she just didn't fit. No matter how hard she tried, he told himself, she probably never would.


	21. Just Another Day

James was home alone when he heard the frantic knocking on the door. He opened it and found himself face to face with Jonathan Putnam. "What do you want?" He asked. "Whatever it is, I'm the only one home, so you'll most likely have to wait."

"Actually," Jonathan told him, "you're the person I wanted to see. May I come in?"

"All right," James replied hesitantly. "What do you want?"

"I just wondered if you've met the new head of the Council," Jonathan told him. "Or if you've at least _heard_ that Astrid has been replaced?"

"Yes, I've heard," James nodded. "I've wondered if this change is gonna mean anything for me. Are you worrying the same?"

"I did at first," Jonathan nodded. "But I met the young lady who has replaced Astrid and apparently, I have nothing to worry about. See?" He pulled Cordelia's number out of his pocket and showed it to James. "I don't know whether to be thrilled or worried. She may have been flirting with me, but I'm not sure. When I was last aware of what flirting looked like, the times were different."

He paused. "Her name is Cordelia, as you can see, and when she saw me, she said she was coming around to every important criminal and telling them that none of Astrid's decisions would be reversed. "I wonder if that also applies to hirings and firings, or if you'll get a visit from her, also?"

"Who knows?" James shrugged. "I guess we'll see, won't we?"

And it didn't take long for Cordelia to find James.

"You know, you're very well-hidden," she said as she came into the house. "I looked for ages."

"Really?" James asked. "It didn't seem like it took you very long, if you consider that Jonathan told me about you only a few days ago."

"So why is it that you choose to live in a completely different dimension and not on earth?" Cordelia asked, making herself comfortable on the living room sofa.

"Well, I assume you know of my previous job before I went into the more positive side of law enforcement," James said.

"Of course I know," Cordelia replied. "Everyone does!"

"Well, even though I've changed jobs, I still choose to live here because I value my privacy, and I'm sure not many people would want to visit me in the normal world anyway. My wife and I tried that once, and it didn't last very long."

Cordelia turned and gazed at the ship in the yard. "What's that?" She asked.

"It's a ship," James replied.

"I know that," Cordelia replied. "But why is it there?"

"It's sort of a place where the family goes for peace and quiet," James told her. "The kids can play there, and it has living quarters if we want a change of scenery."

"How delightful!" Cordelia exclaimed.

"Now back to brass tacks," James said firmly. "What did you come here to tell me? Are you going to place me back in my old job as a punisher, or do I get to stay in law enforcement, on the less hurty end of things? Or am I fired?"

"Why would I fire you?" Cordelia asked him. "You seem to be very good at your job."

"Well, I think that too," James replied. "But with you being new management and all, I figured it probably wouldn't hurt to ask anyway."

"So I can expect to see you at work tomorrow?" Cordelia asked him.

"Of course," James replied.

"Good," Cordelia replied. "See you then, Mr. O'Connell." Just as she was getting up to leave, Susanna came in with Rusty at her heels. "Hi, Lady," she said to Cordelia. "Who are you?"

"Well, hello, sweetie!" Cordelia replied. "I'm Cordelia."

"She's my new boss, Monster," James added to his daughter.

"'Monster'?" Cordelia repeated in surprise. "Why do you call this sweet little girl that?"

"It's meant affectionately," James told her. "But as you've only known her for a few minutes, it wouldn't make sense to you."

"And this is Rusty," Susanna said, presenting the dog to Cordelia. "He's my bestest friend."

"You know, I had a cat like that," Cordelia told her. "I told him everything."

"Did he die?" Susanna asked.

"Well, yes, he did." Cordelia nodded. "He got old and that happens when animals get old."

"But Rusty is really _old,_" Susanna said. "He was Grandma's dog first."

"He has a spell on him," James told Cordelia. "He's got eternal life. It's a long story."

"It sounds like it," Cordelia said, and then got up. "Anyway, I need to get back to the office now so I can continue to move in."

"All right," James replied. "I look forward to working with you."

She left and Lenora came, a bathrobe on, her hair wet from her shower. "Who was that?"

"Daddy's boss," Susanna told her. "She likes Rusty."

"Well, who wouldn't?" Lenora asked, leaning down to pet the dog, who then rolled over so she could rub his tummy. She did that and then went off to try her hair. Then the phone rang.

"I get it! I get it!" Susanna cried. She went and picked up the phone before Jonathan could stop her. "Hi person!" She greeted cheerfully.

"Well, hello!" Jonathan said. "Susanna, is that you? It's Jonathan."

"Yes," Susanna replied. "Wanna talk to Daddy, Jonathan?"

"Yes, I would, dear," Jonathan replied. "Thank you." She then handed James the phone and said unnecessarily, "It's Jonathan," before she and Rusty ran off to play.

"Sorry about that," James apologized when he had the phone up to his ear. "Susanna likes to answer the phone."

"Oh, I don't mind," Jonathan replied. "For a girl her age, she really has lovely phone manners."

"Well, good," James replied. "What can I do for you?"

"Nothing," Jonathan replied. "I just wondered if you met Miss Payne yet."

"Miss Payne?" Jonathan asked. "Do you mean Cordelia? Cause she was just here, and apparently, I'm not gonna be fired, or demoted, or anything like that."

"Well, I'm glad to hear it," Jonathan replied.

"Why?" James asked.

Jonathan shrugged. "I just am."

"All right," James replied. "Thank you." He hung up after that and Susanna came back to him, her head hanging. "Am I in trouble for answering the phone?" She asked.

"No, sweetheart," James told her. "In fact, Jonathan seemed to enjoy it very much."

"Good," Susanna said. "Will you take me out to the boat now, Daddy?"

"Sure," James replied. "Why not?"

* * *

But things weren't so idyllic for everyone. Adrian, for instance, was having a problem. "Get dressed," Helene was presently urging him. "You have to come baby clothes shopping with me."

"I don't want to," Adrian replied. "I've gotten you food, I've rubbed your back, I've rubbed your feet, I held your hair when you got sick, now I just...can I have some quiet time to myself? Please? Besides, the last time I went with you to buy baby things, all the women in the store gave me dirty looks like they knew what I did."

"I want you to come anyway," Helene replied. "How do I know you won't head for the hills if I leave you alone?"

"Cause I won't!" Adrian replied. "I know I don't deserve to say this at all, but can you please just trust me?"

"Fine," Helene said shortly. "I'll go myself."

"Good luck," Adrian replied cheerfully. "I'll probably go visit my dad. If you want, you can call there to check on me when you get back."

"Don't think I won't," Helene replied, narrowing her eyes at him. She left and then after he was sure she was gone, Adrian grabbed his keys and headed over to Klaus and Amy's.

He started a little when Amy answered the door and he found Savannah staring back at him. "Are you all right?" Amy asked.

"Can I come in?" Adrian replied.

"Of course," Amy nodded and gestured him inside. "How have you been?"

"Busy," Adrian replied. "It seems like every time I turn around, Helene needs me to do something for her. Not that I'm not happy to, but I'm at the point where I need a break for a little bit."

"That's understandable," Amy said. "Has she been paying attention to the witch news lately? She probably knows they replaced Astrid at the council."

"Of course she knows," Adrian replied. "Astrid's a wreck about it. Apparently, being the mistress of the most powerful guy in the world isn't the boon everyone thinks it is."

"Of course it's not," Klaus replied. "Cause she loves Alistair for god's sake and Conal's completely deprived her of him. How could you think Astrid would be at all happy about this?"

"I never said she'd be _happy_," Adrian replied. "I just thought it wouldn't be so bad to put up with until Conal decides to give her Alistair back, but I guess not."

"Well, were you happy when you and Helene were separated and you were trying to have a good time with all those flimsily dressed girls in their bathing suits?" Klaus asked him. "Were you?"

"No," Adrian replied. "Not really."

"There you go," Klaus nodded. "I rest my case."

"On another subject," Adrian said, "isn't it Savannah's birthday next month?"

"Yeah, it is," Amy nodded as Savannah reached for her brother and Adrian took her in his lap.

"Great," Klaus scoffed. "Someone else for her to replace me with."

"Don't blame me for the fact that she probably thinks I'm you," Adrian told him. "That's all genetics' fault."

"Anyway," Amy said, "we probably won't do anything too big. Just cake, ice cream and presents. You and Helene are invited, of course. If she feels up to it, that is. And my sister and your uncle Kol are gonna be there too."

"How wonderful," Adrian replied dryly. "I still haven't thanked him for that while oak-covered sword he stuck in my gut."

"He's actually really improved since that happened," Amy said. "Margot's had a good influence on him, which is something I hoped for, but didn't think would actually happen."

"If there was a chance that they would both still be bad influences on each other, why did you insist on them meeting each other?" Klaus asked.

"Well, you never know with people," Amy said. "I mean, I think I've been good influence on you, Klaus."

"And I _wish_ I could be a bad influence on you," Klaus replied. "But you're just too good to fall for it."

"Oh, I don't know," Amy replied. "It depends on what you do."

"All right, all right," Adrian said. "We're veering into territory that is uncomfortable for me. It's one thing to take it from my parents, but Amy, I expect better from you."

"Sorry," Amy replied, then smirked at Klaus when Adrian wasn't looking. He got up to walk around with Savannah just as the doorbell rang. "I'll get it," Adrian told Amy. "I'm the one who's up anyway."

He went to answer the door and found Kol and Margot on the other side. "Well, speak of the devil," Adrian said as he narrowed his eyes at his uncle. Kol and Margot came inside and Kol said, "Adrian! It's been ages since I've seen you."

"No kidding," Adrian replied as Savannah, whom Adrian had left on the living room floor, began crawling toward Kol, who picked her up. "The last time we met, you stuck a sword in my gut."

"But that did you nothing but good," Kol said. "I mean, you've reunited with your lady love, who'd hated you previously. That's a good thing, right?"

"Maybe," Adrian replied.

"So I guess I don't have to apologize for that," Kol continued.

"Fine, fine," Adrian said. "What about apologizing for kidnapping and trying to kill my daughters? Cause that didn't benefit me. And the only reason why you did it was so you could be in an unchallenged relationship with Helene."

"Seriously?" Margot asked. "Kol, who did you try and kill?"

Kol sighed. "He and his wife were separated and Helene and I were working to help the witches he was oppressing in New Orleans," he said. "Then we got into a relationship, but she was too hung up on her daughters to pay me the right amount of attention so I thought-"

"You thought you'd kill them?" Margot asked. "Kol, are you insane?"

"Maybe I was then," Kol replied. "But you know I've improved."

"If you were really improved, you would have told me about what happened between you and Helene before now," Margot said angrily. "Cause I don't think you did!" She made her way toward the door and Kol started to follow her. She turned around and said, "Don't you follow me."

"I thought we were going home, though," Kol said.

"No," Margot shook her head. "_I_ am going home. _You_ are staying somewhere else until I've decided you can come back. Are you gonna kill me for making that choice?"

"No," Kol sighed. "Just go."

Margot left, slamming the door behind her and Kol sat heavily on the sofa.

"Well, damn," Amy remarked to him after a little bit. "I thought a chat to clear the air between the two of you would make things better, not worse."

"Well," Klaus said, looking out the door from which Margot had exited, "you were wrong, weren't you?"

* * *

"You know," Conal said, rolling off Astrid after some lackluster lovemaking. "I don't think you put a lot of effort into what we just did."

"How can you tell?" Astrid asked dryly, covering herself with a sheet and sitting up.

"Well, you didn't move," Conal said. "You just sort of lie there and let me do all the work. Is there how you are with your husband, too?"

"No," Astrid replied. "Cause I _love_ my husband. I'm only putting up with you."

"You know," Conal said, "this can be very easy, or very difficult. At present, you're making it difficult, and it's beginning to make me angry."

"Good," Astrid shot back. "It's about time someone actually told you how they felt about you after more than a thousand years."

"I don't _want_ a woman to tell me what she thinks," Conal replied. "I want a woman who is obedient, who when I tell them to do something, actually does it."

"Well, if you want that from me, you aren't gonna get it," Astrid replied. "And you can offer me all the bribes you want, but none of them will work, cause all I want from you is my husband back."

With a grunt of anger, Conal gave her a hard slap in the face, so hard that she fell back against the headboard, unconscious. Then, he stroked her bare body, causing magic to rise up and illuminate it. "When you awaken, you'll obey me," he said. "You'll think of no one but me, and focus on nothing but my whims." Then, he awakened her and she looked at him with a smile. "So," she said. "Where were we?"

"I think it's time for another tumble," he said and took her in his arms.

"Oh, good!" Astrid said cheerfully. "I'm so lucky!"

"Think about all the other women who would love to be in your position," Conal whispered, and then a silver tiara materialized in the air.

"Is that for me?" Astrid asked, taking it out of the air and putting it on.

"Of course it's for you," Conal replied. Then, he did the test of the spell. "Did Alistair ever give you things like this?"

Astrid's face became blank at the question. "Who's Alistair?"

"No one," Conal said, chuckling to himself for a moment before he went in to kiss Astrid's neck. "No one at all, dear."


	22. Rising Up

"Mom!" Helene said as she opened the door. "Hi!"

"Hello!" Astrid said cheerfully.

"Nice to see you," Helene told her as they both sat down. "You haven't talked to anyone in awhile, and frankly, I was starting to get worried."

Astrid chuckled. "You have no reason to worry about me, dear. In fact, you should be feeling more happy than anything else."

"Why?" Helene asked.

Astrid went, got her purse, and pulled some paper out of it, handing it to Helene. "Read this," she said. "And I hope you're happy for me!"

Helene looked it over and felt her jaw drop. "This is a wedding invitation!" She cried. "What the hell, Mother?"

"Conal proposed to me," Astrid replied, holding out her big ring for Helene to see. "And I saw no reasons to refuse him, so..."

"I have a big one!" Helene cried. "You're already married! to my dad!"

"No, I'm not," Astrid told her. "And I think it's time we moved on."

"No!" Helene shook her head. "I won't! And if you go through with this stupid wedding, I'm not coming!" She then burst into tears and ran out of the room.

Astrid sighed and went back to see Conal. "Helene didn't take the news of our engagement well," she told him. "Not that I thought she would, but..." Astrid shrugged. "That's one less person we have to invite to the wedding, I guess."

"Yes," Conal replied and threaded his fingers through Astrid's hair, get close to her so that he could breath in its scent. "I hope _my_ daughters won't be so difficult about this."

"Oh, I'm sure they won't," Astrid said.

"I agree," Conal nodded. "The only one I have left to worry about is Enid, and I don't see how _she_ would cause a problem."

* * *

Owen was standing at the bar and started badly when Helene suddenly popped in. "Where is she?" She asked him. "Where's Enid? I need to talk to her, and I need to talk to her _now_."

"All-all right," Owen nodded. "Just calm down, have a seat, and I'll go get her."

"You better!" Helene called after him. When Enid approached her a few minutes later, her first question for Helene was: "Everything all right with your pregnancy? What's wrong?"

"I'll tell you what's wrong!" Helene got out. "And it has _nothing_ to do with my pregnancy. Tell me why the hell you're not doing anything about the fact that my mother is being forced into a marriage with your father at the cost of _my_ father's life! He did something to her, I know it! And you _better _have a way to fix it!"

"Sit down and breathe, Helene," Enid told her. "I have a plan to fix everything going on with my father and your mother and I _swear_ to you that it'll work out in the end. Your mom will even get her job back at the Council."

"Yeah, well, she better," Helene replied, eyes narrowed. "What's the plan?"

"Well, my father possessed Alistair in the first place just to check up on things, but now this crush on Astrid has made him want to stay," Enid replied. "So what we need to do is find him a new woman. Someone who is kind of materialistic, shallow, and not really a fan of meaningful relationships. Then we'll find some way to get them together at the wedding with the stipulation that Father leave Astrid and Alistair alone and let them live their lives."

"And _if_ we were to find such a woman," Helene continued, "Where would it be? And when would she and your dad get together?"

"Well, I can't say off the top of my head where we'd find her, but I think the best place to put her with my dad for good would be at the wedding, like a last minute switcheroo. Don't worry, Helene. It'll work out."

"Seems a little chancy," Helene replied. "But I'll trust you, cause what other choice do I have? But _don't_ make me regret that decision!" Then she left and Owen came to stand next to Enid. "Sounds like there's a lot riding on this situation," he said. "Do you really think you'll be able to deliver on your promise?"

"Of course I will," Enid said, taking his hand and giving him a kiss. "Daddy may be a tough nut to crack, but it's not _impossible._ I'll fix things up with him, get Astrid and Alistair together like they should be, and then you and I...we'll be together like we're supposed to be too!"

"All right," Owen nodded, embracing her. "Good luck."

* * *

Knowing that finding another woman for her father would be key, Enid sent out an all points bulletin for every witch and warlock she could communicate with to keep an eye out for someone, which is why Jonathan was more than happy to see Cordelia Pryce come to his door. She looked weary as she strode into his house and collapsed on the sofa, pushing her dark hair out of her eyes.

"Long week?" Jonathan asked her.

"Yeah," Cordelia sighed. "You have _no_ idea how hard it is to run the council practically alone and frankly, when they offered me the job, neither did I. If Astrid hadn't been so lucky to reel in a good catch like Conal, I would totally give her her job back and beg her to switch places with me."

"You would?" Jonathan asked, eyebrows raised. "You know, Conal's not really the 'family' type, so if you want to have children, he might not be your best choice."

Cordelia gave him a long look and burst out laughing. "What makes you think I'd want to have children?"

"Well, when you came to see me the first time, you seemed enchanted by Savannah," Jonathan replied. "Or was I just imagining that?"

"Children are fine in small doses," Cordelia said. "But I would never want any of my own. Just me and a guy who's rich and powerful. That's all I really need."

"Is that so?" Jonathan asked, eyebrow raised. "Can I offer you a drink?"

She asked for a diet soda, and when he got up to get it, he also made a call to Enid and told her that they may have just found their girl.

* * *

"I don't understand why we have to be here," Sam told Addie as they walked into the venue and he adjusted his tie. "I don't even know the people who are getting married!"

"You're my plus one, so really, you don't have to know anybody," Addie told him. "But just so you know, I'm techincally related to both of the people who are gonna have weddings today. The first one is my grandfather, who will run off with another woman if things go according to plan, and the second, _actual_ wedding will be between my biological parents, so you can see why I brought you."

They said a brief 'Hello' to Joey and Diana who came in after them, and then Joey asked his sister, "so did Aunt Enid say you and I were supposed to be part of this thing that all the magical people are gonna do?"

"I don't think so," Addie shook her head. "I think she said our magic was too unfocused."

"Well, that eases my mind a bit," Joey replied. They walked into the main area where everyone else was, including Helene and Adrian (who'd come at _her_ insistence), James and Lenora, Jonathan, Klaus and Amy, and Margot and Kol.

"We're all here?" Enid appeared with Owen at her side. Both were, of course, very neatly dressed, although Enid seemed nervous.

"Yeah," Adrian replied. "I didn't want Helene to come, but here we are. This won't wreck her pregnancy, will it?"

"No," Enid replied. "I wouldn't ask her to do it if it did. In fact, she might be the most useful asset out of everyone here."

"Well, all right," Adrian nodded. "And while you're doing this thing, what are us non-magical people supposed to do?"

"Oh, you won't be waiting around for long periods of time," Enid replied. "And we'll need you here to keep up the pretense."

Adrian sighed as Enid saw Cordelia enter the building. She went over to her and Cordelia said, "Jonathan told me to come here, but he wouldn't tell me why."

"Well, he told you to come because I'm about to do you a great big favor," Enid replied. "A while ago you expressed to him a wish that you could take Astrid's place as my father's companion. Is that true?"

"Well, yeah!" Cordelia nodded. "No real attachment necessary, being at the center of magical power, and just being able to say I'm with the most powerful being in the world? Sign me up!"

"Not a problem," Enid said. "Just come this way." As they made their way to the dressing room so Enid could zap Cordelia into a copy of Astrid's dress, their ruse was almost ruined as they passed Conal's dressing room and he poked his head out.

"There you are, Enid!" He said, then smiled when he noticed Cordelia, taking her hand to kiss it. "And who is _this_ lovely creature?"

Cordelia's jaw dropped and she began babbling so much she couldn't even spit out her own name.

"This is my friend Cordelia," Enid said. "I just...am taking her to the bathroom, and then I'm gonna go check on Enid."

Ever since Conal had laid eyes on Cordelia, he hadn't taken his gaze away from her, so when he heard Astrid's name, his reaction was "Who?"

"The woman you're about to marry!" Enid cried in exasperation. "You possessed her husband just so you could go through with this wedding."

"Oh," Conal coughed. "Right." He gave Cordelia one last glance and said, "If you'll excuse me, ladies, I need to prepare."

"Goodbye!" Cordelia waved at him and let out a really embarrassing high-pitched giggle.

* * *

Once Enid was sure her father was out of the way, she and Cordelia continued on to an empty room opposite the one where Astrid was preparing for her marriage. "Wait here just a minute," Enid said once Cordelia had settled on a stool. "I have to go check on something, but I'll be back." She then went to Astrid's dressing room, took quick note of her dress, tied her up, and then locked her in a closet.

"Hey!" she cried from the closed closet door, pounding on it with her palm. "Let me out! You can't do this to me!"

"I'll let you out soon," Enid assured her. "But now you have to stay where you are. I'm doing you a favor." Then, vision of Astrid's dress in hand, she went to fix up Cordelia.

"So," Cordelia said, standing up as Enid entered the room. "How is this gonna work?"

"Well," Enid cleared her throat. "The woman my father _thinks_ he's marrying is currently tied up and locked in a closet in her dressing room. I'm gonna put you in her wedding dress, and it will be _you_ who goes down the aisle and marries my father."

"All right," Cordelia replied.

"Just one thing, though," Enid asked as she pushed up her sleeves.

"What?" Cordelia asked.

"How do you feel about being a blonde?"

"Why?"

"Cause Astrid is and I think my father will be suspicious if Astrid comes into this place as a blonde and is a brunette walking down the aisle."

"Oh," Cordelia nodded. "All right. If you put it that way, I've _always_ wanted to try being a blonde."

"In fact," Enid said, "To be completely safe, I'll just turn you into her." And with that, Enid gave Cordelia Astrid's appearance just in time for her father to fling the door open and come barging in.

"Daddy!" Enid said, shielding Cordelia from his view. "What are you doing? You're not supposed to be in here!"

Conal smiled. "I just wanted to let you know that I was ready for the ceremony to begin. You know how I don't like to be kept waiting."

"Yes, yes," Enid sighed. "I know, Father. Go take your place and we'll be along in a second."

Conal went to the room where the wedding was to take place, amazed by all the people assembled there. "How nice of my daughter," he thought to himself. "So much easier to have a willing crowd than people who have to be forced." He got down the aisle and waited as the music started and the doors opened, revealing his bride. Everyone watched as she made her way down the aisle, and when he pulled up her veil, and was just about to kiss her, Enid snapped her fingers and Astrid, untied and angry, burst into the room.

"I object to this wedding!" She cried.

"Astrid!" Conal shouted, and then looked at her twin standing across from him. "What's going on?"

"You can't do this, Father." Enid told him. "I won't let you. Give Astrid and Alistair their lives back. _Now."_

Conal just grinned and turned Cordelia back to her normal appearance. "Or I could _not_ do that and take _both_ of these young women," he said. "I doubt you could stop me."

"Maybe I can't by myself," Enid told him. "But I thought ahead. Several of us here are witches and warlocks and together, we're just as powerful as you."

"Is that so?" Conal grinned. "Well, bring it on." Everyone who had powers began magic in Conal's direction. Nothing seemed to work until Helene let out sneeze that triggered such a surge of magic in her that it brought one of the beams of the roof right down on Conal's body.

As he moaned and struggled to get out (one of the successful spells Enid had hit him with had neutralized his powers) Enid came and stood over him. "Let Astrid and Alistair go," she repeated. "And you can have this lovely woman here for yourself." She pointed at Cordelia. "Please, Daddy."

Conal's eyes narrowed, but he finally agreed. Enid got the beam off him, and he mustered what strength he had to remove the spell from Astrid and vacate Alistair, after which Enid gave him a body of his own, and he and Cordelia stood arm in arm.

"You're not too mad at me, are you, Father?" She asked as Astrid got Alistair home to be healed.

"You tricked me, Enid," Conal told her. "Now, I don't have a single daughter who hasn't foolishly betrayed me. And you know I don't like that."

"Fine," Enid sighed. "What's the punishment?"

He took Joey and Addie, who were just waiting in another room and brought them to her. "These are your children, Enid. Are they not?"

"Yes, but please don't kill them!" Enid begged. "They've been through enough thanks to Hazel."

"I won't kill them," he said. "But I think your sister had it right when she told you you could only see Owen every five-hundred years. It'll be the same with your children."

"Oh, but Father, you can't!" Enid protested.

"I can," Conal replied. "And I am. Be grateful that I'm letting you be with Owen, unlike your sister."

"Fine," Enid said and curtseyed a bit. "Thank you for your mercy, Father."

Conal grinned. "And because I'm feeling particularly benevolent, I'll let your children see their parents marry before the separation. In fact, I'll even marry the pair of you myself."

And Enid and Owen could do nothing but agree.

* * *

After everything was all over, Jonathan made his way out of the building alone.

"Hey," Enid said, noticing this and following him out. "I just...I wanted to thank you for all your help. If it hadn't been for you, Astrid and Alistair never would have been put right."

"Oh, it's nothing, really," Jonathan said, blushing a little.

"Of course it's not nothing!" Enid said. "I know I have to go, but before I do, I want to give you a reward to say 'Thank you'. Is there anything you'd like?"

"Well," Jonathan said. "In case you didn't notice, I was the only one who came alone today and I just...I wondered if I was ever gonna find anyone. Can you...is it in your power to answer that for me?"

Enid sighed. "Normally, doing something like that isn't allowed, but...I'll make an exception for you. Tonight, in your dreams, you'll get an idea of the person you're meant for."

"Really?" Jonathan asked. "Thank you. Thank you very much."

"You're welcome," Enid replied and went to get in the car so she and Owen could head home to pack and then to the airport and begin their five-hundred year tour of Europe. It'd been lousy the first time, what with plagues and wars and stuff, but it was sure to be much better this time around. At least that's what they'd tell the kids when they found time to write them a post card.

* * *

With Enid's promise firmly rooted in his mind, Jonathan was more than eager to go to bed that night. He _really _hoped that there would be someone out there for him, in spite of all he'd done, since Margot and Amy were no longer options.

"Oh, Savannah," he sighed as he closed his eyes. "If only you were the same age as your mother..." _This was the thought on his mind as he fell asleep, and in his mind, found himself in Savannah's bedroom. Everything seemed old, dusty, and abandoned. He sat in the rocking chair, unsure what would happen next, and then starting badly when the door opened and a blindfolded young woman with pulled back red hair came into the room._

_"Jonathan?" She asked. "Jonathan Putnam? Are you here?"_

_"Yes," he said, standing up. "I'm here. Why are you...why are you blindfolded?" He reached out to undo the blindfold, but the young woman reached up and slapped his hand. "You can't do that," she said. "It's cheating. However..." She put her arms around him and kissed him soundly, which caused his legs to turn to jelly and he sat heavily in the rocking chair again._

_"Well-I have to say," he got out. "That was unexpected, but nice. Now tell me who you are."_

_"No," she said and then ran out the open door._

_"Come back!" He cried, running after her, her giggles echoing through the halls. She ran with a lot of agility for someone who was blindfolded, and when he finally was convinced he'd caught up to her, she disappeared, and he woke up in bed, panting and more confused than ever._

* * *

Kol had been staying at Klaus and Amy's since before the wedding, but he finally decided that he wasn't gonna do that anymore. He left and drove back to Margot's, knocking furiously and calling for her to let him in.

"Why should I?" She said flatly when she answered. "And stop shouting. You're making a scene."

"You should because if your sister can tolerate my brother after all he's done, why can't you tolerate me? Besides, isn't it a little lonely in that big bed all by yourself?"

"I'm not some sort of sex maniac, Kol," Margot replied. "I have self-control."

"But why have it when you don't need it?" Kol countered. "Come on, just let me in, Gorgeous. Please? I'm not going back to Klaus and Amy's, so if you don't let me in, I'll have to, I don't know, sleep on a bench in the park or something."

"It's gonna be a reasonably warm night," Margot shot back. "It won't kill you."

"Fine," Kol said. "But before I go, can I do one thing?"

"Fine," Margot said, her arms crossed. "What is it?"

He pulled her to him and kissed her briefly but deeply before she pulled away, slapped him, and pushed him off the steps and into the bushes.

"I like a girl with spirit," Kol said, sitting up and putting a hand to his face.

"Are you gonna leave?" Margot asked.

"No," Kol shook his head.

"Fine," Margot replied. "But you're sleeping on the sofa."

Kol smirked as he got to his feet. "I bet that won't be for long. You have no willpower."

"Shut up!" Margot said as Kol followed her into the house, barely making it inside before she used her magic to shut the door behind him. "You don't know anything!"

"If you don't care about me," Kol pressed, "Why did you have me be your date to that wedding we just went to? Why didn't you just go with Jonathan? He wasn't with anyone."

"Because I just...how many times do I have to tell you to shut up?" Margot replied.

"Oh, I don't know," Kol replied, giving her a look. "But there _are_ more effective and easier ways to make me silent, the most pleasant of which involves those lovely lips of yours." He wiggled his eyebrows. "What do you say?"

"You want me to _kiss_ you?" Margot asked. "Not a chance in hell!"

"I don't understand why you're mad," Kol said. "The thing you're angry at me about is over and done now and I have no intention of repeating it."

"Really?" Margot asked, eying him suspiciously. "Do you _swear?_"

"Yes," Kol replied, his dark gaze steady on her face. "Please, darling. Believe me."

"All right," Margot sighed. "What else can I do, really?"

He grinned, took her in his arms and kissed her, before carrying her off to bed for a raucous session of lovemaking that was interrupted after a long time by a knock on the bedroom door.

"Well, that's convenient," Kol replied, pushing his sweaty hair back and wrapping a towel around his waist.

"Definitely," Margot replied. "Not that I haven't been enjoying myself."

"Oh, I know you were," Kol winked. "That's not something I was worried about." But when he opened the door, his good mood was shattered. There, standing tall and straight in front of him, was his father.

"Kol," he said, inclining his head. "Your brother Elijah pointed out to me not too long ago that I've been remiss in checking up on you. So I've come to do so." He looked Kol over as the younger vampire tried to control his breathing and maintain a grip on the sheet. "Interesting. I frequently find Elijah in similar states of _dishabille_. What sort of a person have you brought into your bed?"

Kol sighed and turned around, directing his father's gaze to Margot, who was struggling to cover herself up with blankets. "Hi," she said, feeling shy for once. "I'm-I'm Margot."

"She's a witch," Kol replied. "We share this house."

"Interesting," Mikael replied, raising an eyebrow. "Finally, a woman who is making you think about settling down."

"I never said that, Father," Kol said. But when Mikael gave him a severe look, Kol continued, "but it's not outside the realm of possibility."

"Good," Mikael cleared his throat. "It'll be nice finally having grandchildren who don't come from that blasted Lonely Heart. She made a fool of me, you know. And a fool out of Eljah."

"This has been a nice chat, Father," Kol told him, "but if you intend to stay, at least give us time to dress properly."

"All right," Mikael said after a moment. "But remember, I don't like to be kept waiting."

"Yes, yes," Kol said once he'd shut the door on Mikael's retreating back. "What a pain in the ass."

"Is that man really your father?" Margot asked, going to the closet to dress.

"Yes," Kol said through his teeth. "And I'll have to _thank_ Elijah for sending him here."

"Oh, I bet it won't be so bad," Margot replied. "The sooner we tell him what he wants to hear, the sooner he'll go away." She tossed his clothes at him and Kol grudgingly put them on. "I hope you're right," he told her. "Cause I don't know how long I can be polite."


	23. Dreamgirl

"That was some wedding, wasn't it?" Amy asked Klaus. "Sorry you didn't have a good time."

"Well, it was a witch thing so I didn't really expect to," Klaus replied as he cuddled Savannah. "No offense."

"None taken," Amy cleared her throat. "In all honesty, the only people who enjoy witch get togethers are witches and warlocks. Cause that's just how things are."

Klaus was about to speak, but at that moment, both Kol and Margot burst through the door and took up residence on the sofa.

"You know," Kol said, looking around appreciatively, "This really _is_ a nice place. Roomy, inviting...Father-free..."

Klaus looked up. "When you say 'Father,' you mean you saw Mikael?"

"Yes," Kol replied wryly. "Elijah was kind enough to sic him on me. I oughta give him a call and thank him." He cracked his knuckles as Klaus chuckled.

"It's not funny, Nik! Do you have _any_ idea what a pain in the ass that man is?"

"Well, yes," Klaus replied. "Probably even more than you."

"Oh," Kol nodded. "Right."

"We didn't see him for very long, but I already know I don't like him," Margot said, sitting down and shivering.

"Now it's not nice to talk about people like that, Margot," Amy scolded. "Maybe you should be with him longer before you judge him."

"He tried to kill me and my sister Anna for years," Klaus told her dryly. "_And_ he killed my favorite horse."

"Oh, I'm sorry!" Amy replied, then looked at Margot. "You can hate him then, I guess."

Margot scoffed. "I don't need your permission," she said.

"And thanks to Elijah, Margot and I are now obligated to give Father _grandchildren_," Kol told Klaus. "Can you believe that? Can you imagine me being _anyone's_ parent?"

"Well, you don't do so bad with Savannah," Margot pointed out as Savannah got up to her feet and took a few wobbly steps toward Kol before falling down and crying out in frustration. "Look, she's coming to see her favorite uncle right now."

Rolling his eyes, Kol came to help Savannah to her feet. "You don't want to become dependent on me, kid," he told her. "I'm just gonna disappoint you in the end."

Just then, there was a knock at the door, done in a particular pattern that meant only one person could be on the other side of the door: Jonathan.

"Come in," Amy called. Jonathan entered hesitantly, and when he saw Kol and Margot, he stepped back. "You have company," he said. "It's not important. I'll come back later."

"Don't be silly," Amy replied, as Klaus' face went red. "Have a seat. Can I get you anything?"

"No, thank you," Jonathan shook his head. He looked pale and nervous.

"Are you all right?" Amy asked him.

"I hope you are," Klaus replied. "If you're sick, I don't want you sitting on my sofa."

"Be nice," Amy chided him, coming to sit next to Jonathan. Klaus rolled his eyes at this behavior and got up to get a drink while Kol smirked. Klaus came back with a beer and sat down, putting an arm possessively around her.

"I just...I had a dream the other night and it's troubled me," Jonathan said, looking at Amy. "It was sent to me by Enid as a thank you for finding Cordelia to distract her father. She told me that the dream would tell me who I would be with."

"You mean romantically?" Amy asked, intrigued. "Who is it?"

"It better not be Amy," Klaus replied.

"Of course not," Jonathan replied. "But I'm worried that it might be Savannah."

At that, Klaus choked on his beer and then spit it out, before speeding over and grabbing Jonathan by the throat. "Take that back," he said from between his teeth before giving Jonathan a shake. But then, suddenly, he began to feel a pain in his head that made him drop the warlock.

"What the hell was that?" He said when he recovered and Jonathan had made it safely back to the sofa.

"It was to teach you that there are better ways of dealing with people than hurting them," Amy replied.

"Oh, how ironic," Klaus replied dryly. "You don't like me hurting Jonathan, so you, and presumably Margot and Jonathan as well, gang up on me and hurt me instead!"

"Well, sadly, I don't know any other way to get through to you," Amy replied. "I mean, I've been asking you to be kind to Jonathan for _months_ and you haven't listened."

Klaus didn't reply to this directly, but instead whispered to Kol to keep an eye on Jonathan before stomping off and slamming the bedroom door.

"So you _really_ think that you're gonna end up being with Savannah?" Margot asked with interest.

"Don't look at me like I'm some sort of monster!" Jonathan replied. "We don't know that for sure. It's only a guess. I couldn't see the young woman's eyes in the dream, cause she was blindfolded, and she ran off and disappeared before I could get a good look at her."

"Well if that's so," Any asked, "then what makes you think it's Savannah?"

"She had red hair," Jonathan said. "And the dream began in an extremely rundown version of Savannah's nursery. And she wanted to play hide and seek with me, which is something Savannah and I do frequently."

"Interesting," Margot replied. "If it's true, you know that's the third Burke witch you will have been with in your life."

"He was never _with_ me," Amy told her sister quickly. "I broke off the engagement before that happened."

"Of course you did," Margot replied, then turned her attention back to Jonathan. "So, what are you gonna do with this information?"

"Well, I don't think there's anything I _can_ do," Jonathan replied. "Other than sit back and wait to see if it comes true."

* * *

"Are you okay?" Vince asked Roxie. "You should be happy. We get to stay the sole watchers of Addie and Joey!"

"Well, how long is that gonna last?" Roxie asked. "They don't even live with us anymore!"

"Well, okay, but we'll still see 'em," Vince pointed out. "It's not like they're gone for good."

Just then, Addie came into the break room at the bar and stood next to her mother. "Still feeling bad, Mom?" She asked. Hearing this, Roxie got a catch in her throat and hugged Addie. "Did you hear that, Vince? She called me 'Mom'."

"Well, yeah," Addie replied, confused. "What else would I call you?"

Roxie shrugged and wiped her nose.

They stood in silence for a few minutes before Addie said, "it might not be a good time for me to ask this, but...can I have my time off early? Sam's coming by later and we're gonna work on song lyrics." She'd been helping Roxie work on fixing up the bar.

"Really?" Vince asked. "Like for an album?"

Addie nodded. "That's Sam's goal now that he's decided he'd be better as a solo artist."

"Or what about being in a duo with a really pretty singer at his side?" Vince asked her.

Addie chuckled. "Well, thank you, Daddy. But I don't think I'm a singer."

"Well, have you ever tried?" Vince asked.

"No," Addie sighed and looked around the bar. "It's weird to see this place so empty," she remarked. "When are you opening again, Mom?"

Roxie sighed. "I told Laura that it would be a couple of weeks when she called, but I'm not sure." She paused. "That's okay, right? You'll be able to find something to do with yourself until then?"

"Yeah," Addie nodded. "Of course."

"Well, all right then," Roxie replied and went back to her office to work on the schedules, and possibly contractors to work on remodeling the bar.

"I thought you were just gonna rework people's schedules and then re-open," Vince said, coming in to look over Roxie's shoulder. "Now you're gonna remodel too?"

"I know it really doesn't need it," Roxie replied. "But I kind of want to make it my own, you know? How it's decorated now, that's what Enid did. I've always thought it could've used some work, so now here's my chance. Do you think I'm crazy?"

"Well, no," Vince replied. "Enid entrusted you with the club, so you do whatever you want. I'm not gonna get involved unless you ask."

"All right," Roxie replied. She looked at the list of employees and decided to delay doing the schedules and got on a website to look at pain colors instead. She was astounded by how many colors and shades there were. "All right," she said, turning to face Vince. "I'm gonna do paint colors now, but there are a lot of choices to go through. Get me some coffee, please, Vince. Cause it's gonna be a _long_ day."

* * *

"Addie!" Sam exclaimed when he opened the door of the boardinghouse and saw her standing on the other side. "Glad to see you back. I was about to come back to the bar, look for you, and maybe have a drink or two."

"You wouldn't be able to do that," Addie told him as she came in. "Mom's closed the bar down until further notice so she can adjust to being the new owner and get things settled."

"Damn," Sam replied. "That means I'm gonna have to go to the store to buy my beer now and that's a pain."

"Yeah, I know," Addie replied. "Isn't it?" She paused. "What would you say to my asking Mom if you can be the in-house entertainment when the bar opens up again? It would be a good opportunity for you."

"I don't know," Sam replied.

"Why do you not know?" Addie asked. "What could possibly be bad about having a steady job? And don't start talking about that 'I'm a lone wolf' crap. Didn't you like it when you performed on talent night and everyone came to see you? You can have that experience again and again if you take the job."

"I'll think about it!" Sam told her, feeling testy. "Don't push me!"

"And I bet this would be a bad time for me to ask if I can sing while you play?" Addie continued. That made Sam look up. "You're good at coming up with lyrics," he told her. "But _can_ you sing?"

Addie shrugged. "I might be able to. I've only ever tried in the shower."

"Well, once you get to the fact that you feel confident about your singing, we'll give it a shot," Sam replied. "You and me, it could be something fun."

"Well, good," Addie smiled. "I hoped you would think that."

"All right," Sam replied. "Next time we're in the shower, you have to sing for me."

"While we're in the _shower_?" Addie asked, shocked. "I don't know if I can sing while I'm naked and you're staring at me."

Sam grinned and said, "Just pretend there's an audience," he said. "There's not a big difference."

"All right," Addie replied doubtfully. "I don't know how well it'll work though. It might even just make things worse."

"Hey, singing with me was your idea," Sam reminded her. "Don't back out on me now just because you're scared."

"I'm not scared!" Addie replied and turned on the radio. "I can do it." Her effort was not particulary impressive to her, but it seemed to please Sam.

"Great," he grinned. "We can start rehearsing later if you want."

"All right," Addie said.

That was the only thing on her mind until the first letter that she'd gotten from Enid since her parents had left came. She read the letter over, and then made a reply, asking if Enid and Owen planned on ever having a permanent address or at least a permanent phone number, cause Laura needed to talk to her desperately about a problem with Edward. She sent it off then, hoping for Laura and Edward's sake that what Enid sent back would be useful.


	24. Jonathan's Decision

Roxie was surprised when Klaus called her and asked her to come visit.

"Can you, darling?" He asked her. "Or are you busy?"

"Well," Roxie cleared her throat. "I'm *still* dealing with what color I should paint the bar, but it's giving me a headache, so I could use a break. Do you need me to babysit Savannah while you and Amy go out?"

"No," Klaus replied. "Just come to the house and you'll see."

Curious, Roxie said goodbye to her father and hung up, yelling to Vince that she was heading out. He'd gone out earlier in the day, and she wasn't sure he'd come back yet. When she got no response, she left him a note in case he was there, but hadn't heard her, got on her bike, and drove to Klaus and Amy's. Seeing Vince's motorcycle parked next to her father's car only made her more curious. She parked her bike next to that of her husband and went inside, calling out for someone. Finally, she arrived in the backyard and was greeted by a loud "Surprise!" which nearly gave her a heart attack. "What's going on?" She asked, looking around at everyone assembled including her parents and her kids. "What are we celebrating? It's not even my birthday."

"We just wanted to congratulate you on taking possession of the club," Selina explained. "We know you're gonna do well with it. Enid couldn't have left it to a better person."

"Oh, please," Roxie replied. "She only picked me to run the place cause I practically live there. For all she knows, I could run the place into the ground!"

"Oh, no, you won't," Vince replied. "Although some people might question that color you're planning to paint the walls with."

"Seriously though," Roxie replied, eying her mother. "It really wasn't worth a party."

"Yes, it was," Selina said firmly.

"I'm proud of you, Roxanne," Elijah added. "It's nice to see you finally nailing down a purpose for yourself."

Roxie shrugged. "Well, it's not like I had much else to do," she said.

"Now that you're here, Mom," Joey said with Diana at his side. "Why don't we cut the cake?"

"Sure," Roxie shrugged. "Why not?"

"How long do you have before you have to get back to work?" Selina asked. "Do you have a lot to do? Should I just wrap up a piece and send it with you?"

"No, no!" Roxie replied. "I can stay. It's nice to be able to get out of my cramped office for a bit, especially since everyone made so much effort to show up."

Things went smoothly until Roxie heard another car pull up. "Did you invite someone else?" She asked her father. "Who else would come? Everyone who should be here is here."

"I don't know," Klaus replied. "Maybe I should go and see." But before he could move, two people came into the yard with a definite purpose in mind. Kol was in the lead, and Margot was following him at a distance. They got into the yard and Kol strode right up to Elijah, punching him in the face, which sent Elijah sprawling to the ground, his face full of surprise.

"What was that for, Kol?" He asked.

"Oh, like you don't know," Kol replied with a chuckle. "Just a little 'thank you' for encouraging Father to come visit Margot and me. We _really_ appreciated it."

"I _told_ you that was a bad idea," Selina said to Elijah as he got to his feet.

"Don't make me laugh!" Elijah told her. "When I told you what I'd done, you laughed. You were _pleased_!"

"You were?" Kol asked, eying Selina.

"Possibly," she replied. "But don't punch me. I didn't have any part of it. I only knew about it after the fact."

"If you _had _known about it beforehand," Kol asked her, eyes narrowed. "Would you have encouged it, Lonely Heart?"

"Well, granted, it _is_ nice to have Mikael pestering someone else for a change," Selina admitted. "But he's been a pain in my ass for a _long_ time, and I wouldn't wish that on anyone else."

"You see, Kol?" Margot asked. "Now that you've done what you came to do, let's go home." She began to try and pull him away, but he pulled his arm out of her grasp. "No," he said. "I want to stay."

"How did you even know to come here?" Amy asked her sister.

"Oh, I don't know!" Margot replied. "He went over to your house, came back all angry, and said this is where we were going. He probably found a note or something. You know how you compulsively need to write everything down."

Amy sighed as Kol began grabbing handfuls of cake and shoveling them into his mouth. "What a neat eater," she said, wincing. "Maybe you should take him home. I'll bring your car back later."

"All right," Margot replied, grabbing a struggling Kol and zapping him away from the party.

"Sorry about that," Amy told Roxie.

"Oh, it's okay," Roxie replied, smirking as she watched Elijah rub his jaw. "Not surprisingly, that's not the worst thing to happen at a party thrown for me."

"Definitely not," Vince replied. "Remember what used to happen at some of the ones you had at the bar when we were kids?"

Roxie nodded."So many drunken, loutish werewolves at a kids' party. There being a murder because of a bar fight was not uncommon."

"Not to mention when your dad showed up hammered and started turning everyone into hybrids," Vince added.

Roxie gave him a look. "We don't need to bring that up anymore," she reminded Vince gently when she saw her father's eyes drop. "Now, is there any cake left? Or is it all gone, Daddy?"

"I think there's some left," Klaus replied. "Let's just have a look, shall we?"

* * *

"Are we at the point in our association with each other where we can start sharing feelings?" Jonathan asked James.

"Why?" James asked. "Do you have feelings you need to share?"

"Well, yes!" Jonathan replied. "And nary a soul to share them with."

"Oh, all right," James sighed. "Unburden yourself."

"The most horrifying thing was shown to me about my future!" Jonathan replied. "I now suspect I know the person I'm going to share the rest of my life with, but what's horrifying is that at present, she's just a baby. Isn't that horrifying?"

"I admit that it's strange," James replied. "But surely by the time you're with her, she'll be at an acceptable age."

"Of course!" Jonathan replied. "I wouldn't go any other way." He paused. "You don't seem too shocked by this."

"Well, when I first met Lenora and made the deal for her to come work with me, she was only eight or ten years old," James replied. "I was gonna do something to her aunt, but she didn't want that to happen."

"And you took her to live with you even though she was only eight years old?" Jonathan asked. "And with her grandmother running the council? Are you mad?"

"No," James shook his head. "I waited until she was sixteen _and_ used some magic trickery to make sure she_ actually _broke the law, in case Astrid tried to protest. Despite what you may think, Mr. Putnam, I'm not a fool."

"I didn't say you were," Jonathan replied. "As for my own issues, I think staying away from Savannah from now on to try and avoid making a more solid attachment, or at least to make her hate me is the only thing I can do."

"Do you really think that's a good idea?" James asked.

"Well, do you have any others?" Jonathan asked. "If you do, please tell me."

"No," James sighed after a little bit. "I suppose you can do as you see fit. But I doubt it will make things go the way you want them to."

"Well, we can only hope," Jonathan replied.

* * *

It was after that that, although it broke his heart to do so, he put his new plan of how to deal with Savannah into action. He found other ways to fill up his time, continuing his association with James and even endearing himself to James' children, especially Susanna, until finally, one day, he got the call he'd dreaded.

"Jonathan?" Amy asked. "Can we talk?"

"All right," Jonathan replied. "What about?"

"Well, Savannah and I haven't seen you in a long time," she said. "Sure, it's making Klaus want to throw a parade, but...is everything all right? Have we done something to offend you? If it was cause of something Klaus did, I'll give him a talking to."

"Oh, no," Jonathan replied. "His most recent physical actions against me _were_ warranted, I guess. Since she's his daughter, Savannah is a delicate subject for him. I understand that. And I shouldn't have just blurted out what happened in the dream right in front of him. With that in mind, I've decided to...lay low for a bit. It's nothing you did, but I just...I want Savannah to grow up and be with someone her own age instead of spending all her time being unreasonably attached to me."

"All right," Amy replied. "If that's what you think is best, even though I don't think you need to go that far."

"But I _do_," Jonathan replied. "Try to understand, Amy. Please."

"I _do_," Amy replied. "But I don't know how well Savannah will handle being taken away from one of her favorite people in the world. I think she's already suffering from withdrawal. But don't worry. We'll find some way to fix it without you having to be involved."

Jonathan shut his eyes. "Thank you, Amy," he said. "And good luck."

* * *

But despite Amy's efforts, nothing improved, and it got to the point where even _Klaus_ was begging Amy to take Savannah to see Jonathan.

"All right," Amy sighed at last. "I'll take her, and in the mean time, you can go hunting or something until we get back."

"That is exactly what I planned to do," Klaus replied. He looked exhausted. "Maybe I'll see if Kol wants to come with me. Or I'll just go over to his house for a nap. It just depends."

"All right," Amy replied, rubbing at her eyes which had bags and dark smudges around them. "Hopefully, at least _one_ of us will be able to get some sleep." She then went in and got Savannah, whose face was red and puffy from crying, even though she wasn't doing it at the moment.

"All right," Amy told her. "You're going to get what you want. I'm taking you to see Jonathan. But you have to promise to behave after that, because you've been acting terribly and it's driven us nearly insane, all right?" Savannah seemed to understand, and then Amy got her ready and was about to zap them to Jonathan's when Klaus poked his head in the door.

"I just thought of something," he said. "If Savannah not seeing Jonathan was the cause of all our misery, then why couldn't you just make a double of him like you made a double of yourself?"

"Cause I can't make a double of anyone who isn't me," she said. "Well, I guess I could if I had some of Jonathan's DNA, but he said he was trying to wean himself off of Savannah and I wanted to respect his wishes up until now, so seeing him wasn't an option."

"All right," Klaus replied.

Amy then zapped herself and Savannah to Jonathan's doorstep and knocked. When he opened the door and saw them, Jonathan sighed before opening it, and Amy could tell from the look on his face that he was dismayed to see them.

"Amy, remember what I told you about how I wanted to handle Savannah..." he began, but before Amy had time to respond, he actually got a good look at her. "My god," he said. "What's happened to you? You look so tired! Come in, please."

"Thank you," Amy said and brought Savannah in, sitting down on the sofa while Jonathan brought her some tea. She accepted it with a nod of thanks after she put Savannah down on the floor.

"I haven't really slept ever since you decided to stop visiting us," Amy replied. "Now, like I told you, I accept your choice and respect it, but Savannah...she doesn't, and she misses you." This was obvious cause Savannah was now eagerly crawling toward him and attached herself to Jonathan's leg. He stared down at the big-eyed little girl and sighed. "All right," he told Amy. "After you finish your tea, feel free to lie down and have a rest. I think your daughter and I need to have a talk."

"All right, thank you," Amy said and gulped down the rest of her tea before going to tuck herself in. After she was gone, Jonathan detached Savannah from his leg and put her in his lap.

"You know, you're not being very nice to your mother," he said sternly as she peered up at him. "She's a very nice woman and you're making trouble for her. That's not acceptable."

Then Savannah cuddled against him and he rolled his eyes. "Oh, no, young lady," he said. "Don't you do that to me. Don't you try to make me go soft just so I won't be mad at you anymore. But after a few seconds, he reached down and stroked her red hair. "I'm not avoiding you on purpose," he said. "I don't hate you. I just...you're a _little girl_! You shouldn't be attaching yourself to me! You should be attaching yourself to your father and your uncle...your aunt, you mother..._anyone_ would be better for you than me! Do you understand?"

Savannah heard this and burst into tears again.

"Oh, stop!" Jonathan ordered and brought a spell down on her that rendered her silent. After a moment, she began looking around with interest until, when Amy finally awoke, came out, and thanked Jonathan for giving her the opportunity to rest, she reached out her arms for her mother.

"So is everything all right now?" She asked. "She seems fine."

Jonathan thought about telling her about the spell he'd put on Savannah, but he didn't see the point. "Yes," he said. "Everything is fine. Things should be better for you and Klaus now, cause Savannah will be behaving herself from now on."

"Well, wonderful," Amy replied. "Thank you. Am I correct in saying that you still won't be coming around to see us anymore?"

"That's true," Jonathan replied. "That vision of my future Enid gave me, despite the fact that its intent was harmless...it's really made me re-think things."

"So you don't _want_ to be with Savannah in the future?" Amy asked.

"Well, no!" Jonathan replied. "Amy, she deserves to be attached to someone her own age rather than an old man like me. Klaus pointed that out, and I agree with him. My coming to visit you would just undo my whole effort so that Enid's vision of the future for Savannah _does not_ come true. I'm doing this for her sake, even though it hurts me."

"All right," Amy nodded. "If you think that's best. Goodbye, Jonathan." He nodded briefly. "Goodbye, Amy."


	25. Going Home

"Did you do it?" James asked Jonathan as the latter came into his house, his head hung. "Look at my face, how it's positioned," he replied. "If I hadn't done it, do you think I would be this upset?"

"I can't believe you actually did it," James replied in amazement. "I thought it was just a bluff!"

"No," Jonathan shook his head. "Not a bluff, sadly. I was serious."

"So what did you do with Savannah?" James asked. "Surely you had to do something to make her forget you."

"I used a spell," Jonathan replied. "It made her not recognize me at all. As long as I stay away, it won't be a problem."

"And how difficult will it be for you to stay away?" James asked.

"You have no idea how difficult it will be," Jonathan replied. "It'll be hell."

"I don't know what to say," James told him. "Do you want me to say anything at all?"

"Do you have anything to say that would actually _help_ me?" Jonathan asked. "Or would it just be nonsense meant to try and soothe my worried mind?"

"Nonsense," James replied immediately.

"Well, never mind, then," James replied.

"I just need something to take my mind off of things!" Jonathan replied, his hands balling into fists from the tension he was feeling. "Just anything at all would be good."

Just then, Susanna came in. "Hi, Jonathan!" She said and came up to hug him. He didn't let her touch him for long before he gently pushed her away. "What are you going to do today?" He asked her.

"Mommy and me are gonna go see Savannah," she answered. "It's gonna be _fun_!"

"I'm sure it will be for you," Jonathan replied with a sigh. "I hope you have a good time."

Susanna sobered. "What's the matter?" She asked him. "Why are you sad?"

"Because unlike you," Jonathan replied, taking her in his lap, "I can't see Savannah anymore."

"Why not?" Susanna asked.

"Cause somebody told me that she was gonna be in love with me some day and I don't think that's a good idea," he replied. "And I figure that if I stay away from her, she'll have the good sense to be with someone her own age."

"Oh," Susanna nodded as if she understood. "Okay."

"Speaking of relationships that border on inappropriate," James said with a grin as Henry and Margaret came into the house. "Here comes my son and Maggie."

Henry and Margaret came in, took one quick look at Jonathan, then went off to play without a word to anyone. Lenora followed a few seconds later, and then strode up to her daughter. "Since I'm back, do you want to go to see Savannah now?" She asked. "Or do you want to wait a little bit?"

"I wanna go now!" Susanna replied happily, getting to her feet with amazing speed before grabbing her mother's hand and dragging her toward the door. "Come _on_, Mommy! Let's _go_!"

"I think I'm gonna go too," Jonathan replied once they were gone.

"You know you don't have to," James replied. "You can stay."

"I know," Jonathan replied. "And I thank you for that. But I think...I think I'd rather be alone while I try to keep my mind on other things besides my present troubles. Good day, James."

"Goodbye," James replied. "And good luck!"

* * *

Despite what he'd told James, Jonathan forced himself to believe it would be easy for him to sleep now that he'd made Savannah forget him. But still, he tossed and turned that night. Finally, he did the only thing he could think of to do: the next day, he went and saw Alistair.

"Mr. Putnam!" Alistair said in surprise when he saw Jonathan on the other side. "What can I do for you?"

"I'm-I'm struggling with something," he said when he came in. "I got a hint from Enid that I'm going to end up with Savannah when she's much older, but as she's now only a child, the thought horrifies me. I resolved to make her forget me. Even put a spell on her to make sure of it. But I haven't been able to sleep since."

"Could it be because you feel guilty for putting a spell on a child?" Alistair asked. "Why don't you just go to Klaus and Amy's and remove it?"

Jonathan sighed. "We'll be right back to square one then," he said. "But I guess...I guess taking the spell off of Savannah will give me a good night's rest if nothing else." Thanking Alistair, he then went to see Amy and to her surprise, offered to babysit Savannah one more time.

"I thought you were trying to get away from her," Amy said. "Couldn't stay away, could you?"

"It's only one more time," Jonathan told her. "Don't make a big deal out of this." He was left to babysit Savannah after that, and the little baby looked at him blankly. "I'm sorry," He apologized to her. "I made a horrible mistake. But I'm going to fix it. I'm going to make things better for both of us."

He then removed the spell from Savannah and, with a deep breath and a small kiss on the baby's forehead, put the forgetting spell on himself.

* * *

Amy was a little surprised when she and Klaus returned from their outing and Jonathan handed Savannah to her saying, "Here is a baby, Amy. Is it yours?"

"Well, of course she's ours!" Amy exclaimed, feeling confused as she took Savannah back. "Jonathan, you know that!"

"I do?" Jonathan asked. "No. I think I would know if you had a child. Good day. I think I'll be trying to look for a job now, cause I know I don't have one."

"Well, good luck!" Klaus called. "And here's hoping that it keeps you so busy that we don't have to see you much anymore!"

"Be nice!" Amy chided him when Jonathan was gone. "Can't you see that there's something wrong with him? He has no idea about Savannah at all!"

"And the bad thing about that is what?" Klaus asked. "It seems entirely beneficial to me."

"Here we go again," Amy sighed. "I thought you'd gotten over this jealousy toward Jonathan, but apparently not. There's _obviously _something wrong with him! I think he needs help!"

"I think you've helped him enough for the moment," Klaus told her. "And even if he doesn't know Savannah, that's not necessarily the worst thing in the world. It seems like he's trying to get his life back together. Why don't you let him have a chance to do that before you interfere?"

Amy sighed. "All right," she replied. "Fine. But if he contacts me and says he wants my help at _any_ time, I'm gonna go help him. Okay?"

"All right," Klaus replied and took Savannah. "Fine. Whatever."

* * *

"Do _not_ have children, Kol," Klaus advised his brother. "Or at least do so with a woman who doesn't have her ex attached to her hip."

"Just a minute," Kol replied, his voice slurred, as he grinned at Margot and downed yet another shot of whiskey. "How many does that make for me?" He asked her. "Ten? Fifteen?"

"Oh, I don't know," Margot replied, her head down on the table and her red hair spread out. "I just know you've had more than me and that means you win." With lots of effort, she raised her head from the table, gave Klaus a nod, and then stood up. "I'm gonna go puke now, okay?" She said and then ran off to the bathroom.

"Nice to see you got a girl that can hold her liquor," Klaus said wryly.

"Oh, it's all right," Kol replied. "She has other good qualities." He paused. "Now, what's brought you here?" He asked. "Is it something about Amy?"

Klaus sighed. "Jonathan apparently has some sort of memory-loss regarding Savannah, and Amy is making a much bigger deal about it than she needs to."

"Why do you stay with her if she bothers you so much?" Kol asked him. "You probably complain about something regarding her and Jonathan at _least_ once a day, so why don't you just leave? It'll save you a lot of trouble."

"There's no way I'm leaving," Klaus replied firmly. "Jonathan has left to find a job, and with that going on, we might never see him again. So really, what would I gain from starting a fight with Amy now?"

"Well, nothing I guess," Kol replied. "It was just an idea."

Then, Klaus chuckled. "That was a nice punch you gave Elijah at Roxie's party," he said.

"I know that it probably ruined things," Kol replied. "But I don't really care. He had a punch coming and damn it, I was gonna give it to him!"

"I think _all_ of us have wanted to give Elijah a punch in the jaw every once in awhile," Klaus replied dryly. "But you're one of the few to live the dream."

"Well, he set Father on me," Kol reiterated. "Was I supposed to leave that alone? Do you remember that he wants me to have _children_ with Margot? That'll be an absolute nightmare. We're not the type!" He paused. "I mean, I know we watch Savannah sometimes, but that's different cause no matter how much we screw her up, we can always give her back to you in a few hours. It's not permanent. And that's good enough for me!"

Just then, Margot came back in the room, pushing stringy red hair out of her eyes. "I think I feel better now," she said. Then she came to sit in Kol's lap. "Do you want your prize now?" She asked.

"Not now," he said. "You're not looking so hot at the moment. Maybe you should go lie down."

"Oh, all right," Margot replied, and stumbled, falling face first on the floor. Sighing, Kol picked her up and carried her to bed before coming back to Klaus, and eying Savannah, who was reaching out for him eagerly.

"No, thanks, kid," he told her. "You don't want me touching you now."

"Definitely not," Klaus replied. "Savannah, Uncle Kol isn't feeling well right now. If he tried to hold onto you, he'd lose his grip and drop you, and then I'd have to explain to your mother what happened. I don't think either of us wants that."

Savannah pouted and started to pull her hand away, but Kol took it and kissed it. "There, kid," he said. "Is that good enough?"

The pout turned into a smile and then Savannah buried her head in Klaus' shoulder. "So, what will we do now?" Klaus asked him.

"Well, let's see," Kol replied. "You came over here to complain about Amy, and you've done that, so I have no idea."

"Since Margot is asleep, you wanna come home with Savannah and me?" Klaus asked. "You can't do much here."

"All right," Kol replied. "Why not?"

"Just one thing though," Klaus replied as they headed out. "I'm driving."

* * *

It had been a bad day for Jonathan. Looking for a job was difficult. He knew he could ask Astrid if anything was available at the council, but he didn't really want to. He had only one option then: to go home and try and get his father's forgiveness to join the family business. He packed his bags and then settled down to bed for the night, knowing he'd need all the rest he could get for the next day.

He drifted off into sleep and dreamed of a red-haired young lady. She looked both familiar and unfamiliar, and when she saw him, her blue eyes sparkling, she smiled. "Hello, Jonathan," she said, coming to hug him. She smelled like cinnamon and when she pulled away, the smell stayed on his coat. "Who are you?" He asked her. "How do you know me?"

Her smile disappeared. "I wish I could tell you," she said. "But I can't. You'll find out eventually, though." He saw that she was wearing a necklace with a tiny letter 's' on it. "Is that what your name starts with?" He asked, indicating the necklace. The young woman then gasped and threw the necklace away, slowly disappearing as he woke up, the light from his clock shining in his face.

* * *

Wincing, he sat up, shook his head, and tried to get his bearings as he undressed and made his way to the shower. As the warm water flowed over him, he made the mistake of shutting his eyes and letting the image of the redhead come back to him. She was beautiful, of course. A figment of his imagination, but beautiful. Why would he be imagining such a beautiful woman? He'd heard from his mother when he was a child that sometimes, dreams showed you the person that you'd spend the rest of your life with. He had no idea who the redhead might be, but he _really_ wanted to find out. Maybe he'd find her when he went to see his father. Maybe when he joined the medical practice, she'd be one of his patients and he could spend his time thoroughly examining her (for purely medical purposes, of course; it would be wrong to think about it any other way than that).

The thought cheered him up immensely, and he got out of the shower, dressed, packed his bags, and zapped himself right to his parents' front door. He put his bags down, knocked, and the door opened to reveal his father's stern face.

"Jonathan," he said. "It's been awhile.

"Yes, sir," Jonathan nodded. "I know it has. I just...I wanted you to know I've finally come to my senses. If there's still a place for me in the practice, I'd like to take it."

"Are you certain?" His father asked. "Are you positive your wild days are behind you and you're ready to be a responsible man, have a job, and support a wife?"

"Oh, yes!" Jonathan said. "I'm definitely ready for that."

"Well, good," his father replied. "I'm glad to finally hear it. You nearly killed your mother with all your shenanigans."

"But she's not _really_ dead, is she?" Jonathan asked.

"No," his father shook his head. "But she came close."

Jonathan zapped his bags to his room and then followed his father inside. His mother was sewing by the fire and his sister Anne was sitting by the hearth, staring into the flames. When she saw her brother, she came and flung her arms around his neck. "It's about time you came home," she said. "Are you here for good?"

"Yes," Jonathan sighed. "Yes, I'm here for good, Anne. For good and forever."


	26. Too Big A Push

"Why did you let me drink so much?" Margot asked Kol irritably as he came back to the house after hanging out at Klaus'. "You get me hammered and then you just abandon me. What kind of a person are you?!"

"Well, did you just expect me to wait around until you woke up?" Kol replied.

"Well, yes!" Margot nodded. "I would have done the same for you!"

"Really?" Kol replied. "How sweet! Maybe we shouldn't have any more drinking contests in the future. You clearly can't hold your liquor as well as I thought."

"I can too!" Margot replied. "That was just a bad batch!"

"Excuses, excuses," Kol replied.

"So...what prize did we decide on for the winner?" Margot asked.

"I think you know," Kol replied, grinning. "But don't worry. I can wait until you feel better. You puking in the middle would kill the mood."

"You can't wait!" Margot replied. "You've never been able to. Not once!"

"You have a point," Kol nodded, staring at her robe. "So what are you still standing there for?"

Margot rolled her eyes. "All right," she replied. "Whatever." Then, he kissed her and she let him carry her off to their room.

* * *

"I just had a thought this morning and I think you and I should talk about it," Margot said to Amy as she strode through her sister's front door.

"What kind of thought?" Amy asked. "Do you need my help?"

"Well, yeah," Margot nodded. "Kind of. If I didn't, I wouldn't have come all the way over here!" She sat down. "Has...has Klaus ever talked to you about what things were like for him when he was growing up?"

Amy shook her head. "It's not something he and I really talk about, but I think he and Selina talked about it a lot."

"And who's that?" Margot asked.

"His first wife," Amy replied. "One of the people at the party that Klaus threw for Roxie. The one who brought the cake. I don't know if you were there long enough to actually meet her or not."

"Why would Klaus talk to _her_ about his past and not you?" Margot asked.

Amy shrugged. "I don't know. I'm thinking maybe he will someday, when he's ready, so I don't want to push him. Why?"

Margot sighed. "Because up until now, Kol and I have had a mainly sexual relationship and since I know he cares about me more than that, I kind of want to start bringing things in a more permanent direction, you know? But I don't know how to do that. How to make Kol comfortable enough to fully commit. Do you think that if I show him that I care, he'll be more willing to open up to me?"

"I don't know how successful that'll be," Amy replied. "But you can try it. What do you plan to do?"

"I have no idea," Margot replied. As Klaus came into the room with Savannah, Margot turned to face him. "Hey," she said. "For all you know, has Kol ever had a birthday party? You know, with presents and cake and stuff?"

"No," Klaus said. "When we were human, we were too busy trying not to die, and when we became vampires, he thought stuff like that was too frivolous. Why?"

"It's part of a scheme to get Kol to commit to her," Amy told him. "I warned her it might not be successful."

Klaus sighed. "You wouldn't be the first witch who's tried over the years to get Kol to commit," he said. "And I doubt you'll be the last. But good luck anyway."

"Thank you," Margot replied. "Thank you very much."

* * *

"And just where have _you_ been?" Kol asked Margot with a grin as she came in from the grocery store and closed the door behind her. He came to kiss her, but she backed away, trying to hide the bag that had a dozen cupcakes and some candles in it behind her back. She'd thought of buying the Swiss army knife at the store, but then realized it would be easier to just zap one up for him.

"What's the matter?" He asked. He was only wearing boxer shorts. "That's not how people usually respond when I try and kiss them."

"And you know I'm usually more than happy to return the gesture," Margot replied. "But I have something to do, and you can't see it right now, so...go find something to do with yourself in another room."

Kol grinned and didn't move. "And just what _is_ this thing I'm not allowed to see?" He asked. "Did you buy another set of tiny panties you're gonna model for me?"

"No, nothing like that," Margot replied. "Now, please: just scurry away and I'll tell you when you can come back."

Kol took her in his arms and kissed her, running his hands down her butt and giving it a squeeze. "You're a real tease," he said appreciatively. "I like that in a woman." He left then and Margot took a deep breath, getting out the cupcakes, setting them out on the table, and then putting a candle in each one. She then wrapped up the Swiss army knife and put the package next to the cupcakes. Then she ran into the bedroom where Kol was and he smiled when he saw her and backed her up against the wall, kissing her neck furiously as he unbuttoned her shirt.

"Wait a minute, wait a minute!" She said.

"What?" Kol asked.

"I have a surprise for you," Margot replied. "So we can't do this now. It'll have to wait."

"Hold on," Kol replied. "So the surprise has nothing to do with any of this?" He gestured at her half-unbuttoned blouse and the bit of lacy white bra that was peeking out.

"No," Margot replied and pulled him out the door. "It's something just as good, though. I promise."

"I don't know," Kol replied as she ushered him toward the living room. "It'll take something pretty amazing to beat that."

"Shut your eyes," Margot told him. "It's a surprise, remember."

Kol obligingly shut his eyes, not opening them until she stopped moving him. When he opened then, he was met with a very anticlimactic scene. "Is the surprise that you went to the store and brought cupcakes?" He asked, turning. Then, he picked up the wrapped knife. "And just what's this?"

"It's a present," Margot replied. "For you. And the cupcakes are for you too. I figured you've never had a birthday party or anything like that before, so I wanted to give you one."

She waited for him to be pleased with what she'd done, but he frowned instead. "How could you?" He asked. "Things were going so well between us and then you went and ruined it by doing _this!_ I'm sorry. I'm done with you. I can't be here anymore." Then he strode away from the dining room and Margot, feeling tears well up in her eyes, heard a door slam shut before it opened again several minutes later. Then, Kol came up to Margot, and before he would let her ask any questions, he just said firmly, "Goodbye."

"Where are you going?" Margot asked. "You don't have to leave!"

"But I_ do_," Kol replied. "I can't stay here anymore." Then, he left and Margot ran to her bedroom, closed the door, and cried into her pillow, unsure about why, cause he was just a stupid boy. Why should him leaving affect her so much? She sat up, and took a deep breath. She didn't know if she'd be able to stay here anymore. She knew it was foolish and stupid, but as shallow as her and Kol's relationship had been, him being here with her had made it seem something like a home. And now that he was gone, so was that feeling. So she was going to leave. All she had to do first was figure out where else to go.

* * *

The answer came a few days later when Margot received a brief letter in the mail from Jonathan's father, Doctor Augustus Putnam, which read:

_My Dear Margot,_

_My son has recently decided to return home and join the family business and I was just wondering if you might come and visit him since he doesn't seem to be himself anymore. Although your previous association was not one that I particularly approved of, with your sister no longer available and both you and my son unattached, I think it might help him come back to himself if you came by our house to be with him. It would make his mother especially feel so much better._

_Regards,_

_Augustus Putnam, M.D._

Margot read the letter over several times and smiled to herself. Here was the answer. She'd go live with Jonathan. Granted, as his father had stated, her previous relationship with Jonathan hadn't been particularly good for either of them, but at least it would be something familiar. And since Kol hated Jonathan, if he found out she was with him, maybe that would get his butt in gear to the point where she'd actually get some commitment out of him.

She smiled to herself as she packed her bags and headed off to Jonathan's family home.

It was Jonathan who answered the door to her knock with a shocked look on his face. "Margot!" He cried. "What are you doing here? I thought you'd decided to move in with that-that-well, you know who I mean."

"I did," Margot replied. "But then, apparently, I pushed him too hard and he ran off. And then I got a note from your father saying that you weren't doing so well and it might do you some good for me to come and stay for a bit."

It was then that Jonathan noticed her bags. "Well, come in!" He said. "This is a surprise, since Father never mentioned anything like that to _me_, but since you're here, you might as well make yourself comfortable."

"Thank you," Margot replied. "You know, your father's note came at the perfect time. I didn't feel like living in an empty house and I didn't know what else to do."

"Well, let this be a lesson to you to be more selective about the company you keep," Jonathan advised. "Boys like that Kol might be good lovers but they'll just leave you alone in the end, and you deserve better than that."

"I know," Margot replied. "I don't know _what_ was going through Amy's head when she decided to set me up with him."

Jonathan scoffed. "Perhaps her alliance with his brother has made her forgetful of the family's many faults and she was under the delusion that since Klaus was good for her, Kol would be good for you."

"Well, that's clearly wrong," Margot replied.

"Just forget about him," Jonathan advised.

"Will you help me?" Margot asked.

Jonathan sighed. "Of course," he said. "I could do with a pretty redhead about now."

* * *

"You went to a strip club without me?" Klaus said in disbelief as he and Elijah were talking. "Are you serious?"

"Yes," Elijah nodded. "I told Selina afterward and she wasn't even upset about it, surprisingly."

"Did you go by yourself?" Klaus asked. "Who would you go with besides me?"

"It was Alistair's idea," Elijah replied. "He and I went."

Klaus heard this and burst into loud laughter.

"Oh, shut up, Niklaus!" Elijah replied. "That was Selina's reaction too. As if Alistair and I are old men who don't know how to have fun."

"Sorry," Klaus replied. "But you can't blame me for feeling a little shocked. I mean, you can't even handle going to _Enid's_ without having a problem!"

"Yes, well," Elijah replied. "Next time I decide to go to a strip club, I'll invite you so you can chortle at me in person."

"All right," Klaus replied agreeably. "When do we go? I can't wait."

"Not for a LONG time," Elijah replied. They talked a little longer, than Klaus hung up and went out to Amy in the living room. "How secure do you feel about our relationship?" He asked her.

"I feel good about it," Amy nodded. "Why?"

"Would you be mad if, say, I went to a strip club with my brother?" Klaus asked.

Amy raised an eyebrow. "Why would you wanna do that?"

"I don't know!" Klaus replied. "I just wanna see my straitlaced brother at a strip club!"

"Oh, all right," Amy replied. "So it has nothing to do with you and me. You're not...bored with me at all?"

"No," Klaus shook his head as her outfit shifted to a black leather bustier, a pair of black lace panties, and high heels. "Definitely not."

"You say that," Amy replied with a wicked grin. "And I believe you. But I just wanna make sure." Then she kissed him. He didn't kiss her back right away cause he was kind of shocked, but then he picked her up and carried her off to their room, leaving the door slightly ajar just because they could. In no time flat, they were both naked and going at it on the bed. This went on for a little while before Savannah (who had just recently learned to walk) gave the door a push and toddled in. "Mama!" She yelled at the top of her lungs. "Mama! Mama! Mama!"

"Oh, what the hell?" Amy cried and pushed Klaus off of her, covering herself up with a blanket and pushing her hair out of her eyes. When she saw it was just Savannah, she took a deep breath and Klaus did too.

"Good thing she's not old enough to be scarred for life by the sight of us," Klaus told Amy. Sighing, Amy put a robe on and then went to pick up her daughter. "What do you want?" She asked. "You're supposed to be napping!"

"No!" Savannah shook her head.

"Yes," Amy replied firmly. "Mommy and Daddy are busy right now. Am I gonna have to lock your door so you don't escape until I come and get you?"

At this, Savannah made an innocent face and gave Amy a kiss. Amy then sighed, turned, and gave Klaus a look. "Did you teach her that?" She asked him.

Klaus shrugged. "What can I say? She's a natural!"

Sighing, Amy took Savannah back to her room and struggled with the little girl, finally sitting her on the floor and shutting the door (cause Savannah was too tiny to reach the doorknob) behind her. It was hard to ignore her daughter's tragic wails, but Amy managed to as she made her way back to her and Klaus' room. "Let me guess," Klaus said as he played with Amy's hair. "She's not happy?"

"No," Amy shook her head. "Not one little bit."

* * *

Around dinner, there was a knock at Klaus and Amy's door. Klaus went to open it and was pleased to see Alistair on the other side. "Come in, friend!" He cried. "I heard about your and Elijah's escapades at the strip club and I wondered if he left anything out that you could tell me!"

"Not really," Alistair replied. "I'm sure Elijah's told you everything." It was then that Klaus noticed the blonde whose coat Alistair was removing.

"You don't look like Astrid," he observed.

"Oh, my god, Hazel!" Amy replied when she saw the woman, her face going pale. "What are _you _doing here?"

"We came to visit," Alistair replied. "I hope it's not too much of an imposition."

"Well, no," Amy replied. "But where's Astrid?"

"I don't know," Alistair replied. "And frankly, at the moment, I don't care."

"Why don't the two of you sit down and I'll get you drinks?" Klaus suggested while Amy ran to phone somebody, _anybody_ to tell them what was going on.


	27. Hard To Forget

"Is Dad seriously with another woman?" Helene asked Amy. The latter had already talked to Selina, and now she felt Helene should hear the news.

"Yes," Amy sighed. "And not just anyone. Hazel. Astrid and Selina were at a restaurant and saw them!"

"Well, this just bites!" Helene replied. "If only she wasn't super-powerful, I would revel in ripping off her head for getting in between my mother and father!"

"Well, I just thought you'd wanna know," Amy replied. "And Helene, I'm really sorry."

The call ended and Helene put the phone down. "Now my dad is cheating," she told Adrian morosely. "With Hazel!"

"Well, it could be worse," Adrian replied. "But you'll get the most powerful woman in the world for a step-mom!"

"Shut. Up!" Helene told him. "There will be no break up. I will have no stepmom. This is just a thing that my parents are going through and god damn it, it's not gonna last forever. If I have to bring my parents back together by going into labor in front of them, then damn it, I will!"

"Can you really do that?" Adrian asked, intrigued. "Make yourself go into labor right in front of them?"

"No," Helene shook her head. "But if it was actually possible, I would!"

"Is there anything we can do to keep your mind off of this?" Adrian asked her. "Maybe help you relax?" He began removing his shirt.

"Please put that back on," Helene begged. "I know you're trying to help, but I just...I wanna deal with this right now."

"Oh, all right," Adrian said. "Who do you want to go yell at? Your dad or your mom?"

"Why would I yell at Mom?" Helene asked. "_Dad_ is the one that caused all the trouble!"

"Of course," Adrian replied. "Do you want to drive, or should I?" He looked at her stomach. "Maybe I should."

"Are you saying I'm too fat to drive?" Helene snapped. "Because I'm not! If you're gonna have that attitude, you don't have to come. I'll go by myself!" She then just disappered and Adrian slapped his forehead. "Why didn't I think of that?" He asked himself. He sighed and sat down in front of the TV. What was going on with Helene and her parents really wasn't his business. If he wanted to stick his head in a bunch of family drama, he had no doubt there was some on his side that was about to bubble over. But the fight with Helene, the big one that had led to trouble with Felicity, and even Lenora, had taken a lot out of him and he had no desire to repeat any of it.

A knock at the door made him start and when he went to open it, he breathed a sigh of relief when he saw Lenora on the other side. "Hi, Ladybug," he greeted her. "How are you?"

_"I'm_ fine," Lenora told him. "Can I assume we can't say the same thing about you?"

"How did you guess?" Adrian replied. "Was there something about your grandparents on the witch news?"

"Well, yes," Lenora nodded. "Usually when something involving Conal happens, it makes the witch news. How worked up is Mom about Grandma and Grandpa?"

"Very," Adrian said. "She's threatening to induce labor right in front of them. Can I get you anything?"

"No," Lenora shook her head. "I'm fine." She paused. "How likely do you think it is that Grandma Selina is involved in all this too?"

"I don't know," Adrian replied. "But knowing my mother as I do, the chance is pretty high. She and Astrid are pretty close. And I think I heard something about Alistair and Uncle Elijah going to a strip club too, so Alistair's got Uncle Elijah siding with him. I'm glad I don't live in _that_ house anymore."

"Yeah," Lenora nodded. "It sucks when your parents fight and you feel like you have to take sides." Adrian stared at her for a moment, her words penetrating his brain. Then, he hugged her. "I don't know if I can ever say enough how sorry I am for what you had to go through when your mom and I weren't behaving ourselves. We always think that Felicity got the worst of it because you handled it so well, but you suffered too.

Lenora scoffed. "Yeah, I handled it well. I made a deal to become the servant of the most feared warlock ever and ended up bearing his children, which happened because I murdered a few people. That's _really _handling it."

"Oh, well," Adrian shrugged. "Tomayto, tomahto."

"Sorry," Lenora replied and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "I accept the compliment." She paused. "How much grief do you think Mom is giving Grandpa now?"

"I don't know," Adrian replied. "But I _do _feel sorry for your grandfather."

* * *

Helene strode toward her father's office and pulled the door open, reacting in horror when she saw Hazel and Alistair scrambling to cover themselves up on the sofa. "So it's true!" She cried. "You _are_ cheating on Mom!"

"Now, just a minute, Helene," Alistair said. "Your mother started all this. I'm merely trying to show her how much her unfaithfulness hurt me."

"Oh, don't you try and rationalize your way out of this, you cheating worm!" Helene cried.

"Now, just a minute, young lady!" Alistair replied. "I won't be spoken to like that."

"You're not wearing pants and I'll speak to you however I damn well please!" Helene cried.

"I wouldn't if I were you," Alistair said. "Think of your baby. And turn your back so you're not even more scarred as we put our clothes on."

"Do we _have _to?" Hazel asked. "Why can't you just tell her to go away?"

"Because this is my daughter," Alistair replied. "She deserves an explanation."

"You just gave me one," Helene replied, turning. "Mom cheated, so you're childishly doing the same thing in revenge. How long is this gonna go on, Daddy?"

"Until I feel like I've had enough," Alistair replied, and then kissed Hazel. "And who knows how long that will take."

"Fine," Helene sighed. "But just so you know, Mom knows about this. And Selina too. They saw you together at a restaurant. Good luck having a moment's peace with those two nosing around." Still facing the door, she opened it and strode out, leaving Alistair taking deep breaths and feeling much more tense than he should have felt.

"Now that she's gone," Hazel said, "Where were we?"

"I-I think we should take a rest for today," he said. "Let's talk more about your problems instead."

"Oh, all right," Hazel nodded. "It's not as much fun, but all right."

"Good," Alistair nodded. "Where do you want to start?"

* * *

"What's wrong with you?" Klaus asked his brother as Kol stumbled into the living room and collapsed on the sofa.

"I'm gonna live here now, okay?" Kol said, looking at his brother through bleary eyes.

"Why would you want to live here when you have Margot at home?" Klaus asked. "It makes no sense!"

"I don't like Margot," Kol replied, shaking his head. "She wants a _relationship_ with me. Like a real one."

"And the problem with that is...what?" Klaus asked.

"You know I've never been able to have real relationships!" Kol replied. "It's one of the horrors of being attracted solely to witches! You let them in your life and they just take over and leave you with nothing! They're horrors!"

"Who's a horror?" Amy asked.

"No one," Kol replied quickly.

"He's dumped your sister," Klaus told Amy.

Amy's jaw dropped a little. "You have? Well, it must've upset her cause I've been trying to call her house all day with no answer."

"All right," Klaus said to Kol. "I know you feel like shit right now, but I need you to watch Savannah while Amy and I go clean up your mess, all right? You should be thanking me, brother."

"Meh," Kol responded and after Klaus and Amy had left, he lay down on the floor and tried to relax so he could get some sleep.

As Kol dozed off, he dreamed of Margot, skimpily dressed and beckoning him toward a swimming pool. He ran after her and she jumped in. When she re-emerged, her wet dress clung to every curve of her body. Kol couldn't look away. He started to clumsily undress himself, but then Margot waved her hand and all his clothes disappeared with a _whoosh!, _allowing him to follow her into the pool. They then began kissing passionately, their hands running over each other's wet bodies.

Meanwhile, while a very pleased Kol dreamed, Savannah, who'd been playing in her room, decided to sneak out and play with her uncle instead. Giggling to herself, the little girl climbed on top of him, staring into his eyes and waiting for him to wake up. When Kol opened his eyes, the sight of Savannah startled him so much that he started and swore, nearly making her fall off of him. "Damn, kid!" he said. "You can't just do that! Not while uncle Kol is having very pleasant dreams about Aunt Margot, which could be reality if she wasn't being so difficult! Now, I'm not feeling so good at the moment, so you go back to your room and play, all right?"

He put her in her room, but she magicked herself out. This happened again and again, and each time, she would laugh herself sick. "This isn't a game, Savannah!" Kol told her, trying to keep a hold on his temper. "Stay in your room!" Her face cracked at this scolding and she began to cry. Kol ran his fingers through his hair. This wasn't going well. He tried to keep Savannah in her room, but in his weakened state, she won the contest of wills and he finally let her out, carried her to the kitchen, grabbed a beer, then they went to the living room and watched TV together.

Savannah watched quietly for a little while until her eyes locked on Kol as he was drinking his beer. When he brought it down from his lips, she immediately began reaching for it with her tiny hands and trying to get her mouth around the top.

"Hey, hey, hey!" Kol replied. "This isn't for you! This is magical grown up juice that makes me forget about Aunt Margot. It's not for babies and if your mother saw you with it, she would kill me." He smiled at her. "You don't want to get your favorite uncle in the whole world killed, do you?"

"Oh, my god!" Amy cried as she and Klaus came through the door and saw what was going on.

"Well," Kol sighed. "Never mind."

Amy snatched Savannah away from Kol and held her protectively, taking her into the kitchen to get her a bottle.

"How much trouble am I in?" Kol asked Klaus.

"I'd lay low for awhile, if I were you," Klaus told him. "And in case you're wondering, Margot is fine."

"Why would I wonder that?" Kol asked.

"Oh, come on, Kol!" Klaus rolled his eyes. "You care about her! Admit it!"

"No," Kol replied firmly. "I won't."

"_Anyway_," Klaus continued, "she's apparently moved in with Jonathan Putnam again."

Kol choked on his beer. "Are you _serious?_ I leave for a very understandable reason and the first thing she does in response is run into the arms of fucking Jonathan Putnam?!"

"Yes," Klaus replied with a twinkle in his eye. "That seems to be_ exactly _what he's doing to her."

"Well, all right," Kol replied dismissively. "If she wants to spend the rest of her life with a peasant like him, that's not my problem. There are always gonna be other women. I'm an Original for god's sake! I can have any woman I want!"

"Yes, you can," Klaus said, "And good luck trying to move on, because I really think you'll need it."

* * *

"Interesting man your sister brought to the house yesterday," Dr. Putnam said to Margot over breakfast the next morning.

"You mean Klaus?" Margot asked. "He's all right. It's his brother I have more of an issue with."

Dr. Putnam's eyes widened. "He has a brother?"

"Yes," Jonathan replied. "A terribly annoying and possessive one who was stupid enough to throw Margot away."

Margot sighed. "I think he has commitment problems or something, and that's a real shame."

"You have feelings for him?" Dr. Putnam asked.

Margot sighed. "I_ did_, but what's the point of having them if he's too scared to return them?" She sighed and went back to buttering her toast.

"I think you made a good decision," Dr. Putnam replied. He took some bites of oatmeal and looked at Jonathan. "When you're finished eating, we'll head to the office."

"All right," Jonathan replied. He then looked between Margot and Anne. "Are you two gonna be able to find a way to entertain yourselves today?"

"Don't we always?" Anne replied. "I don't know why you have to ask."

"Cause if you ever get bored," Dr. Putnam added, "You know I'd be more than happy to put you to work at the hospital, like your brother."

"Your tone implies that that's what you want more than anything," Anne replied.

"Well, at least come and visit your mother," Dr. Putnam sighed. "Please. I really think it would do her some good."

"Visit her where?" Jonathan asked. "You said she was visiting Grandma Rose! Is that a lie?"

Anne and her father looked at each other. "Actually," Anne said finally, "she's not visiting Grandma Rose. She's...she's in the hospital. She had a breakdown when you went to jail and Dad thought that it would be best to get her somewhere safe so she wouldn't hurt herself."

There was an awkward silence and then Jonathan put his napkin on the table. "I don't think I can eat anymore," he said. "And Father, if you don't mind, I think I'll stay home from work today."

"All right," Dr. Putnam replied. Then his gaze met Margot's. "Watch him, would you?" He asked, indicating Jonathan, who'd headed up to his room.

"Of course," Margot replied and went in the same direction.

"I'll come with you to see Mom," Anne told her father. "Just give me a few minutes to get ready."

* * *

As Margot comforted a visibly distraught Jonathan, her phone rang. "Yes?" She said lightly, then rolled her eyes when she realized it was Kol who was calling.

"Amy and Nik say you're with Jonathan Putnam now," he said.

"Yeah," Margot replied. "What about it?"

"Well, I wanna know why him," Kol replied. "So tell me."

"No!" Margot shook her head. "I don't have to tell you anything if you're gonna run off like a scardy cat the first time I try to make a real connection with you!"

"Why do we even have to try to make things 'real'?" Kol asked. "Why can't they stay the way they were? And I am _not_ a scardy cat!"

"Because you moved in with me and you haven't been with any other women since that happened," Margot replied. "Excuse me for mistaking that for you willing to give me a commitment, cause that's what those things usually mean! And yes, you _are_ a scardy cat. Now, if you'll excuse me, I can't talk now. Goodbye."

She ended the call and put her arms around Jonathan. "Who was that?" He asked.

"It was nobody," Margot replied. "Just Kol fussing at me and blaming me for _his _mistakes. Can I get you anything? Some tea, maybe?"

"Sure," Jonathan replied. "Thank you."

Margot nodded and went to get Jonathan his tea. She came back and watched him drink it. Then he went to sleep and Kol called again.

"Why did you hang up on me?" He yelled. "I wasn't done talking to you yet!"

"But I was done talking to _you_," Margot replied. "And I have no idea why I answered my phone now."

"Cause you miss the sound of my voice?" Kol hypothesized.

"No," Margot replied. "I don't. Goodbye!" She ended the call again, and when it rang once more, she resolutely chose not to answer it.


	28. Happy Birthday, Baby

On Savannah's first birthday, she was the first one to get up, sneaking into her parents' room and whimpering until they woke up and Klaus picked her up to bring her into bed with them.

"Look, Amy," he said sleepily. "The birthday girl has come to visit us."

Amy groaned and struggled to sit up. "Take her back to bed," she said. "I don't want to get up yet."

"Did you hear about what happened between her and Kol?" Klaus asked. "If she doesn't want to be in her room, she's not gonna stay in her room."

"Fine," Amy replied. "You seem to be more awake then I am. Take her out of here and do something with her."

"Oh, all right," Klaus replied. "If you're gonna be that way." He put Savannah at the foot of the bed and slipped some boxers on, then took the little girl to the living room, getting her some milk and a bowl of cereal to crunch on.

Then, he noticed a box of party supplies and took out a hat, slipping it on her head. "I'm only doing this for your mother's sake," Klaus told her. "If you hate it, it's not my fault. When she's in a better mood, she's gonna love it."

But to his surprise, Savannah didn't protest about the hat, and when Amy came in and saw it, it cheered her up right away.

"Okay," she told Klaus. "Now, we have to get ready for her party. There are issues to be dealt with."

"It shouldn't take you that long to decorate," Klaus said. "Just zap everything up."

"I'm not talking about the decorations," Amy replied. "I'm talking about the guests. Now that Margot and Kol are fighting, things could get awkward."

"I'll talk to Kol if you'll talk to Margot," Klaus replied. "Tell them that they need to make things as smooth as possible, or else I'll kill them both."

"Well, that's as good an incentive as any, I suppose," Amy replied. They ate breakfast, then Amy went to dress herself and Savannah before calling Margot to come visit.

"Do you need help with Savannah's party?" She asked. "With decorating and all that?"

"No, we're fine with decorating," Amy replied. "But I need to talk to you about Kol. I know you and he are having difficulties at the moment, but just for time of Savannah's party, could the two of you at least _try_ to play nice with each other?"

"Of course!" Margot nodded. "You don't have to worry about me. It's _Kol_ who's more likely to be the problem."

It was just as she said this that he came stumbling in, stubble on his face, his hair sticking up at odd angles, his eyes half-open. "Who's talking about me?" He asked sleepily.

"My god!" Margot exclaimed, standing up quickly. "Don't you _ever_ dress?" Kol gazed at her, blinked, and chuckled. "Well, well, well," he said. "Look who's come crawling back! I've beem keeping a spot warm for you in my bed."

"See?!" Margot said to her sister. "I _told_ you that he would be a problem!" Kol ignored her and came closer to Savannah. "What in the hell is that on her head?"

"It's a party hat, Kol," Klaus replied, going to get another one. "I think you should wear one too. It would look awfully fetching on you."

"Don't you come near me with that...thing," Kol replied, stepping back. He'd wanted to add a colorful adjective before the word 'thing', but in deference to the fact that Savannah and Amy were both in the room, he restrained himself.

"So," he said, sitting down. "Who's all coming to this party?"

"Well, you and Margot, naturally," Amy replied. "And Lenora and Susanna, Elijah and Selina-"

"And don't forget to tell him I'm bringing Jonathan too!" Margot added maliciously, a wicked grin on her face.

"Why in the hell would you bring him?" Kol asked her. "Nobody here even likes him!"

"Well, he's had a shock about his mother and I think a party would be just the thing to cheer him up," Margot said. "So either suck it up and come, or spend the whole party sulking in your room."

"What shock has he had about his mother?" Amy asked, looking concerned.

"Apparently, all of Jonathan's legal troubles were a shock to her system and she had some sort of breakdown. She was doing fine for awhile, then Dr. Putnam finally decided it would be safer to put her in a hospital where she could be protected from herself," Margot replied.

"Oh, dear, that poor woman!" Amy cried. "How are Anna and Dr. Putnam taking it?"

"As well as they can," Margot replied. "It hit Jonathan the hardest."

"Well, be sure to bring him then," Amy said. "We'd all be glad to have him."

"No, we wouldn't," Klaus said quickly.

"Yeah!" Kol added. "You can't just go deciding these things without consulting us first."

"Yes, we can," Amy replied. "Cause your objections are stupid!" She glared at her husband. "You know how you said that if Margot and Kol fought at Savannah's party, you'd kill both of them? Well, Klaus, if you pick any fights with Jonathan, it'll be the same thing. Am I clear?"

"Sure," Klaus grinned cheekily. "Whatever, Amy."

"And speaking of party guests," Kol said. "Why did you have to invite Elijah? You know he'll just ruin everything by being boring!"

"He's your brother and the husband of the woman bringing the cake," Amy replied. "So of course he was invited."

Kol and Klaus looked at each other. Between Jonathan and Elijah, it sounded like Savannah's party was gonna be a struggle, and it hadn't even started yet.

* * *

Since he lived in the house, Kol was there for the party before Margot was (cause she'd gone back to Jonathan's to change and let him know about the party) and, ever the trooper, even volunteered to watch the birthday girl.

When the doorbell rang, he picked her up and carried her to the door. "Let's go see who it is," he told her. He opened it and saw Margot on the other side with Jonathan.

"Well, look who it is, Savannah," Kol cried loudly. "It's Aunt Margot. And she brought riffraff with her. How nice."

"Amy said we had to be _nice,"_ Margot said through her teeth while Jonathan's jaw dropped.

"I'm being perfectly nice," Kol replied. "You're the one who brought him to provoke me!"

"What a cute little girl," Jonathan said, reaching for Savannah, who of course, reached for him eagerly. "Can I see her?"

"Good idea," Margot replied. "Cause Kol and I need to have a talk."

Leaving Jonathan, she took Kol off into a corner. "Are you out of your _mind_?" She asked. "We're supposed to behave and I'm obeying that request, cause it's not unreasonable."

"What did you have to bring him for?" Kol lashed out. "Why couldn't you have come alone?"

"Well, I thought you'd like my obeying your wishes and not squashing your freedom," Margot replied. "After all, that's why you dumped me, right? And I already told you the reason earlier! I brought him to cheer him up after what happened with his mother."

"Yes, yes, whatever," Kol waved that away. "You know, I _really _think it wouldn't hurt you to lighten up a little."

"I don't know what you mean," Margot replied.

"I think you do," Kol replied, pulling her to him and whispering against her ear. "Look, there's still time before the party starts and we have a nice empty closet near us. What do you say we go make use of it? Did you wear those tiny panties today?"

"You're not seriously suggesting you and I have sex in a closet," Margot said, squirming and trying to ignore the tingles that were shooting around her body.

"Why not?" Kol asked.

"Because for god's sake, Kol, this is a _one-year-old's_ birthday party! Who the hell has sex in a closet at a one year old's birthday party?"

"Oh, would you lighten up?" Kol said as he ran his hand down Margot's butt. "It's summer. No one will even come near the coat closet anyway!" He kissed her, feeling her guard go down, and her body going limp as Kol brought her into the closet and shut the door behind them. Just as the door closed, Amy put on loud party music and the other guests began to arrive.

Lenora and Susanna came in first and Susanna made a beeline for Savannah, which caused Jonathan to have nothing to do until Lenora and he began to chat.

"Here," Selina said as soon as she and Elijah came into the house. "Are you gonna be able to keep a grip on the cake?"

"_Please_ tell me that there's a close table to set it down on," Elijah told her. "Savannah is a little girl! Why did you have to make the cake so big? It's probably bigger than she is!"

"I know, but I just got carried away," Selina replied. "I love making cakes for birthday parties!" But she took pity on her husband and helped him get it to a table. "Is this a good place for the cake?" She asked Amy. Amy looked at it with amazement. "You know, you really didn't have to make it that big," she said.

"That's what I told her," Elijah replied. "We had to have it in the open trunk of the car cause it wouldn't fit anywhere else!"

Amy looked at Elijah and smiled. "You know, you can take your coat off," she said. "It's probably killing you, isn't it? There's a coat closet near the kitchen."

"Thank you," Elijah nodded. He went and took his coat off, but when he reached the closet and was about to open it, he paused, hearing giggling and moaning coming from inside. He sighed and rolled his eyes. Niklaus and Selina, although it was common for them to pull a stunt like this at fancy events (including his wedding to his wife before Selina) were clearly not the sorts to engage in the behavior now. But who else could it be?

He opened the door and heard a shriek as Margot struggled to cover herself up. She gave Kol a sharp slap and said, "You told me no one was gonna come to the coat closet!"

Kol put a hand on his cheek and glowered at his brother. "Well, apparently, I was wrong," he said, then zipped his pants, put on his shirt and strode out as Elijah shut the door again to give Margot her privacy to dress. "What in the world are you doing?" He asked.

"I _was_ enjoying myself before you came and ruined things," Kol snapped. "Why would you need to wear a jacket this time of year anyway?"

"Cause it's my goal to ruin your life," Elijah replied, deadpan, his arms crossed against his chest.

Just then, Selina came to join him. "What's going on?" She asked.

"I found Kol and Amy's sister having a little_...personal time _in the closet," Elijah replied.

"And you interrupted them?" Selina hit his arm. "How could you? It was bad enough that you did it to Klaus and me. Don't ruin stuff for them too!"

"Well, there you are, Kol!" Klaus exclaimed. "I've been looking everywhere for you!"

"He and Margot were having a good time in the closet, but _Elijah _interrupted them," Selina told Klaus.

"Ah," Klaus grinned. "Nice to see it's not only Selina's and my good time you managed to ruin."

"I know, right?" Selina replied, following Klaus away. "That's what I told him..."

Elijah gave Kol a disapproving look and, with a shake of his head, walked away too, leaving Kol alone next to the closet.

"Is he gone?" Margot asked, poking her head out. "I'm dressed, but I didn't want to come out until your brother was gone."

"Yes," Kol sighed. "He's gone. You can come out. And what the hell did you have to go and slap me for?"

"Because how dare you kiss me and make me feel things!" She cried angrily. "Why can't you just keep your hands to yourself?!"

"Well excuse me for making you happy!" Kol replied. "You weren't exactly miserable in there. In fact, I would say you were enjoying yourself..._a lot."_

"Yeah, well..." She blew a raspberry at him and stalked off.

Kol chuckled and called after her, "You certainly look good walking away from me!"

"Damn right!" She called back.

"What's going on?" Amy asked when Margot finally joined the party. "Elijah was upset. Have you and Kol been fighting after I specifically asked you not to?"

"No," Margot replied. "We weren't fighting, I promise."

"Yeah. We were actually getting along very well," Kol replied. He'd sped over to join the conversation.

"A little _too well_ for my comfort," Margot muttered under her breath.

"Oh, get over yourself," Kol whispered to her. "You loved it."

Before Margot could respond, Amy decided it was time for Savannah to open her presents. She took her to the corner where they were stacked and set one down in front of her daughter. Savannah, however, just stared at it, clueless.

"I can help!" Susanna volunteered. She went next to Savannah and started to rip the paper off the package while Savannah watched, riveted. "You have to do it like_ this_," Susanna told her. "See?"

Savannah then started pulling at the paper too, but Amy had to step in when she started trying to eat it as she took it off.

"No, no," Amy told her. "That's not for eating." She took the soggy paper out of Savannah's mouth and together, she and Susanna opened the rest of Savannah's presents.

Eating the cake was just as exciting. Oddly enough, Savannah chose Elijah's lap to sit in, and after the candle's were blown out (by Susanna, of course), Savannah grabbed hunks of cake and began shoving them in Elijah's mouth.

"Look!" Selina giggled. "She's trying to be friendly!"

"Thank you," Elijah said through a full mouth. "But no more, please."

Finally, Klaus took pity on his brother and brought Savannah to sit with him, despite seeing that Jonathan clearly wanted to hold her.

"You know, this was the perfect time to have a party," Lenora said. "I'm only sorry Grandpa couldn't come. He's a bit...busy at the moment."

"I wondered why I didn't hear from him," Klaus replied. "What's going on?"

Color then sprung up in Lenora's cheeks. "I'll tell you later," she said. "Oh, and I almost forgot: Daddy told me to tell you that he and Mom both wish Savannah a happy birthday and are very sorry they couldn't make it."

"How nice," Amy replied.

Just then, the doorbell rang again.

"That can't be a party guest," Klaus said. "I think everyone you invited is here, right?"

"Yeah," Amy nodded. "I mean, everyone whom I was certain would come, anyway." She went to open the door and gasped. "You came!" She cried. "I hoped you would, but I wasn't sure."

"Of course I came!" Came Felicity's voice. "I tried to get Stefan to come too, but he sort of has issues with little kids."

"Well, I'm happy _you_ could come," Amy told her as she led Felicity into the party room. "Do you have room for cake, or are you just stopping by to drop off a present?"

"No, I can stay," Felicity said. "But Savannah probably doesn't even remember me."

To everyone's surprise, however, Savannah _did_ recognize Felicity and started reaching wildly for the person who was, for all intents and purposes, her sister. Felicity took her in her lap and sat down while Amy brought her a piece of cake.

"How are you doing, sweetie?" Felicity asked Savannah. "I like your hat!" Savannah giggled at the mention of the party hat that was still on her head and snuggled against Felicity.

"So, how have you been?" Lenora asked her sister. "Haven't seen you around much!"

"Well, that's cause Stefan and I have kind of just been keeping to ourselves," Felicity replied. "And now that Sam is thinking about moving out of the boarding house and getting his own place with Addie, we're wondering whether we should just sell it and move somewhere else."

"From Mystic Falls?" Selina asked. "You should. It was the best decision _I_ ever made. Ask Stefan and I bet he'll say the same. And Damon too."

"All right," Felicity grinned as she watched Savannah eat her piece of cake. "I'll mention that to him. He _was_ actually really vocal about leaving."

"Well, if you need a place to stay while you're looking for a new house, you know that the pair of you can always come back here," Amy offered.

"Or with James and me," Lenora said. "I know you usually stay with Mom and Dad, but that might not be the best idea now."

"I figured," Felicity replied. "How far away is Mom from her due date anyway?"

Lenora shrugged. "I don't know," she said. "Couple of months."

"Same with Laura," Selina replied. "She's driving poor Edward crazy. But he's a sport. He'll get through it."

The room then lapsed into silence as everyone finished their cake, then Savannah let out a yawn.

"Looks like she needs a nap," Selina observed. "Maybe all this fun has tired her out."

Amy smiled. "I think that's it." That being said, everyone grabbed their things and headed out. Margot hustled Jonathan out pretty quickly. Kol hadn't done anything to him yet and she didn't want to give him the chance to try. In the end, Kol and Felicity were the only two who stayed behind. Amy put Savannah down for her nap and then cleaned up the room. "Well, that went well," she said.

"I would say so," Kol agreed. "I had a good time."

"Thanks for playing nice with my sister," Amy said. "It was appreciated."

"Oh, it was no problem," Kol told her. Then, as Amy took Felicity to go find a room for night, he grinned to himself. "No trouble at all."


End file.
